The Chronicles of Sarasaland
by Bruce Pendragon
Summary: Another story I wrote when I was quite young. Focuses on Sarasaland, the "other" kingdom of the Mario universe. A story featuring the schemes of Kamek, with Bowser as more of a 'behind the power' villain. Includes an OC. Rated T for mild violence.
1. Prologue: Where the Heart is

_A Word From The Author: Hi, all. This is another Mario fic from my early, inexperienced days as a fanfic writer. It takes place between chapters 3 and four of "The Other Twin" for those of tou who'veread that. For those who haven't, it should still be followable (is that a word?) on its own. It's also noted for being the origin of one of my favorite of my self-written characters, Lord Fortinbras. The rest of the story will be posted once I convert it into a usable text format. Before anything else, I have to say I know a lot of the portrayal of Daisy (her age, her relationship to Luigi) is a far cry from Nintendo's official line. To be honest, that's because when I wrote this, Nintendo had not yet released its official line. See, when this was written, Sarasaland had only been mentioned in the Gameboy "Super Mario Land" series, and I had to fill in a lot of the gaps on my own. If this difference between my fanfic and the official story will bother you, please accept my apologies and move on to another story. If you can suspend your sense of canonicality (is that a word too?), then enjoy! _

The Chronicles of Sarasaland  
Prologue: Where the Heart Is

It was storming outside Toadstool Palace. Wind howled in rage as it blew between the castle turrets and rain beat furiously on the red-tiled roof. But the storm outside was a spring rain compared with the one soon to explode inside the halls of the palace.

"Big Brother," called a six-year-old girl with long blonde hair, her voice audible even over the noise of the storm as she ran through the main hall to catch up with someone, "where are you going?"

"I don't know, Peach," replied a tall man of 19 years with hair bleached white, not slowing his pace a bit as he acknowledged her, "but I'm not staying here any longer."

"But why, Fortinbras?" pleaded the girl. "Why must you leave?"

Fortinbras stopped walking and turned to look down at his younger sister, just as she finally caught up to him. He could see tears beginning to swell in the corners of her wide blue eyes as she spoke. "I guess I owe you an explanation," he sighed as he knelt down beside her, "And you have a right to know. Peach, I'm sure you've heard Mother and Father talking about the threat of war with the Koopas."

Peach nodded.

"Then you know that we've made one retreat after another before the armies of King Morton."

"But Father says it's not King Morton," Peach interrupted. "He says it's his son, Prince Bowser."

Fortinbras rolled his eyes. "Morton, Bowser, what's the difference? Bowser wouldn't be attacking like this without his father's knowledge and permission. He's 13 for Heaven's sake!"

Peach didn't reply.

"In either case," Fortinbras continued, calming slightly, "we've made too many retreats when we should be standing and fighting. It's been an endless cycle. They advance, we fall back. They advance, we fall back. And now, we're running out of places to fall back to, because the Koopas have taken Vista Hill, and Bowser has started building his headquarters there."

"But we can't fight them, Fortinbras," Peach interrupted again. "They're too powerful. Father says our only hope is to wait until the Mario Brothers return and-"

"Oh, enough!" Fortinbras cut her off as he rose and turned back toward the door, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he spoke. "I've heard enough about the great Mario Brothers, and the way everyone waits in anticipation for their victorious return when they'll triumph over the evil Koopa Empire." He turned back toward Peach before continuing, "Peach, the Mario Brothers were a pair of infant twins who were dumped into the warp zone nine years ago to protect them from Kamek. IF they're still alive after all this time, and IF they have any memory of this place, and IF there was even the slightest hint of truth to that ruined old Magikoopa's prophecy, then there's still no guarantee that they'll ever find their way back through the warp zone. And besides that, this kingdom would be to far gone for them to save it if they ever did."

At the end of his rant, Fortinbras looked at Peach and saw the tears she had been fighting back finally escape, rolling down the sides of her face and staining her pink dress. 'Great job, Fortinbras. Now look what you've accomplished,' he thought to himself.

"Sister," Fortinbras spoke softly as he knelt again by Peach, "I know none of what I'm saying makes any sense to a six-year-old, but the Koopa Empire should be stopped."

Peach wiped the tears from her eyes before asking, "So you're going to fight them?"

Fortinbras bit his lip. "Well, no," he replied, "not on my own. But I can't stay in a kingdom that cringes under Morton's heel either. I have to escape the backward politics and warped ideas of this 'Mushroom Kingdom'." He waited for Peach to stop crying completely before continuing, "So now do you see why I have to leave?"

"No," Peach replied childishly, "I don't." She must have realized she sounded very much her age, because she took a deep breath before trying her next approach. "What about your birthright? Who's going to rule after Mother and Father?"

Fortinbras lifted Peach's chin up until her eyes were level with his. "You're a brilliant girl, Peach. You're brilliant, brave, and wise, far beyond your years. You'll make a fine queen one day, my dear sister."

Peach began to sob again as she threw her arms around Fortinbras's neck. "I love you, Big Brother," she said through her tears.

"And I love you, Sister," Fortinbras replied softly, "and I always will." He too had to wipe a tear from his eye as he embraced his sister for what may have been the last time. But in the end, Fortinbras stood up, turned toward the door, and said over his shoulder, "Farewell," as the guards opened the door for him to step out into the rain.

"Don't forget where your home is," Peach called out as the doors closed behind Fortinbras.

Fortinbras pulled his Thalid-blue cloak around him to keep warm and pulled his hood over his head to keep the rain off of him as he surveyed the world outside the palace. "Alright," he muttered to himself as he walked down the palace steps and past gardens of Fire Flowers, "my first stop will be Toad Town to pick up provisions. After that..."

At that moment, on the steps of the only home he had ever known, Fortinbras began to comprehend the reality of his situation. He had no plan, no destination, and no idea what to do next. As he stood there in the rain, the one-time prince of Thalidia closed his eyes and mouthed a silent prayer for some sign, some clue, some sense of where to go.

Fortinbras wasn't sure how long he stood there before the sound of a nearby train whistle jarred him from his trance. "Last call," he heard the voice of an engineer at the Toadtown Train Depot. "Last call. All aboard for Sarasaland."

Sarasaland! Of course! Without another thought, Fortinbras sprinted to the train station and onto the embarking platform just as the conductor was closing the doors of the passenger car.

"And where d'you think you're going?" asked the conductor suspiciously.

"To Sarasaland," Fortinbras replied. "That is where you said this train was bound for, is it not?"

"And where exactly is your ticket?"

Fortinbras stopped short. He hadn't thought of that. "Well, I... I don't have one."

"Uh-huh, I thought so," replied the conductor. "Then you're going nowhere, except back out into the rain."

"Please, if you'll just listen," Fortinbras pleaded as he reached into the folds of his cloak and produced a handful of gleaming blue-gold coins bearing the Toadstool crest, "I'm sure there must be some way I can persuade you to reconsider."

The conductor's eyes glazed over with avarice as he gazed at the small fortune being offered to him. "Well," he said at length, "since you asked nicely, I'll let you ride this time."

"You're very kind, sir," Fortinbras thanked the conductor as he handed him the coins and boarded the train. Moments later the doors closed, the whistle blew, and the train was away. "Sarasaland," Fortinbras thought excitedly, "the only country on the planet still unspoiled by Koopa encroachment." Fortinbras's found himself thinking of all the stories he had heard about Sarasaland, about how elegant and refined her people were, about the way anyone with ambition and skill could achieve greatness-not the greatness that people are born to, but greatness that comes from a person's own work, and from their own sweat and blood: the kind of greatness that can't be questioned. "Yes," Fortinbras thought with a grin, "Sarasaland is where I'll build my life, and where I'll make my name. Sarasaland is where my home will be."


	2. Chapter 1: A Nation at Arms

Chapter One: A Nation at Arms

It was March 13, in the year 64,128 A.D. by the calendar of Sarasaland, and the time was 0927 hours. In three minutes, the royal review of the 7th Army of the Princedom of Birubuto would begin. All 15 divisions were in place, the Color Guard stood Ready, the Band was warmed up. All that was needed now was for the signal to be given and some 81,000 armed Sarasi men would begin their short march around the three square-kilometer assembly field under close watch by Her Imperial Highness, Princess Daisy Rose of the Four Princedoms of Sarasaland.

Fifteen divisions of uniformed troops standing cemented in the position of attention, without a single soldier so much as flinching, made for an imposing sight indeed, and at the front of the imposing formation stood the equally imposing form of a tall, snow-white-haired man of 36 years. He wore the gray uniform of the Sarasi army with broad white epaulettes and a long, flowing white cape clasped in front of his shoulders by a large, royal purple gem set in gold. His plethora of medals had been carefully arranged so that each was clearly visible. All this combined with his perfectly polished infantry boots and his black patrol cap with its patent-leather visor made him the very image of regality. This man was Lord Fortinbras Toadstool, Prime Minister and Lord Chamberlain of the Four Princedoms of Sarasaland, Minister of their Defense.

"It's time to begin," Fortinbras announced under his breath as he turned on his heel to face the mass formation behind him, lead by his fifteen division commanders, all of whom were assembled before him. He drew a deep breath, taking his time as if he enjoyed the effect that swelling his chest had on his already intimidating appearance, and issued a one-word command with such force that it was heard across the entire field: "Report."

One-by-one, fifteen division commanders rendered up straight-armed salutes and replies of "All present and accounted for, Milord," and one-by-one Fortinbras received their reports and returned their salutes with all the pomp and circumstance expected from a Sarasi officer. At exactly 0929 hours, the reports had been given.

"Posts," Fortinbras commanded tersely and his division commanders returned to the front of their respective division formations. When all personnel were in place, Fortinbras about-faced, turning his back to his troops and his eyes to Her Highness.

At exactly 0930 hours, Princess Daisy Rose approached Lord Fortinbras, beginning the reviewing ceremony. "Present," Fortinbras commanded over his right shoulder for all the Army to hear, "ARMS!" In one swift movement, 81,000 right hands snapped forward in the straight-armed salute of the Sarasi Army, and Fortinbras turned his attention back to the approaching reviewer.

"I think my tailor used more fabric in my cape," he thought as Daisy approached, "then her seamstress used in that entire uniform." Indeed, it was obvious that the princess's uniform was designed to flatter her youthful figure rather than to adhere to the Sarasi uniform code. Her short, army-gray skirt was hemmed just above her knees and her low-cut blouse clung to her shapely body like a second skin. The dainty young princess walked slowly, with a pronounced sway in her hips as if she was very well aware that the eyes of every dashing young officer in the 7th Army of Birubuto were fixed upon her. She was, Fortinbras acknowledged as he watched her approach, quite lovely. However, the stoic Minister of Defense quickly thought, clearing his head of these ideas, that didn't matter. She was the princess of Sarasaland, and this was not, in Fortinbras's opinion, the image that a princess should project. "This probably has something to do with that Luigi scalawag," Fortinbras muttered, "but in any case..."

As Daisy stopped in front of Lord Fortinbras, he snapped his arm forcefully into a salute. "Your Most Gracious Imperial Highness," he sounded off, "the 7th Army of Birubuto is formed with all personnel present and accounted for, and is ready for Your Highness's comments."

Daisy smiled as she daintily returned the salute, or something resembling it, and answered, "Your troops may pass in review."

Fortinbras About-faced and drew yet another robust breath. "Pass, IN REVIEW!" he commanded, beginning the ceremony. On the far right of the enormous formation a large silver staff was thrust into the air, signaling the band to begin playing "Army of Light," the battle hymn of the Sarasi Army, and all 15 divisions began marching to their right, following the band in their pompous march around the field.

"They're all so..." Daisy whispered in awe as the first division passed by, "so intimidating."

"How so, M'lady?" Fortinbras humored her with slight amusement.

"Well," Daisy elaborated, "I dare say I haven't seen a soldier in the entire formation who isn't at least a foot taller than me!"

Fortinbras swelled his chest arrogantly and replied, "Your Highness shouldn't have seen any, because there are none."

"Are you calling me short?" Daisy countered indignantly.

"No, M'lady," Fortinbras regressed. "Not short, only... petite."

Daisy looked at Fortinbras for a moment longer before replying "Hmmph," telling Fortinbras exactly how much weight his opinion carried in her eyes.

"In all honesty," Fortinbras continued, struggling to stifle a chuckle at the childlike look on the face of the princess, "recruits in the 7th Birubuto must meet certain appearance requirements, in addition to those required for enlistment in any other unit. For example, we don't admit recruits who are under two meters tall."

"Are you telling me," Daisy asked in shock, "that you would just tell a recruit 'I'm sorry, but you're too short to be in the Army'?"

"No, M'lady," Fortinbras corrected, "I tell them 'I'm sorry, but you're too short for the 7th Birubuto." Fortinbras looked at Daisy and saw that she still had not seen the logic. "After all," he continued persuasively, "the 7th Birubuto is led personally by me, making it the Flagship, so-to-speak, of the Sarasi Army, and putting it in the eyes of foreigners more often than any other unit. So I prefer for them to project a more intimidating appearance than other units. You see, a foreign general, let us say a Koopa doomship commander, upon seeing the 7th Birubuto would think just what you thought. He would say to himself, 'Heavens! Those Sarasi are all giants! I think I'll stay out of their way'."

"In other words," Daisy wrinkled her dainty nose in distaste, "you want foreigners to see the prime unit of the Sarasi Army as 81,000 of the strongest oxen on the planet." She hesitated a moment before adding sarcastically, "I simply love Military Intelligence."

By this time, the Fourth division was beginning to process in front of the two of them.

"Speaking of Military Intelligence," Daisy whispered, changing the subject, "those spies you've ordered to snoop on your little sister have brought back an interesting report."

Fortinbras clenched his fists at the thought of his one-time home, with its backward politics and warped ideas. "What have they found in the Mushroom Kingdom?" he asked, struggling to keep his voice down.

"Thalidia," Daisy corrected, "not 'the Mushroom Kingdom'. That is a derogatory term invented by Bowser, and I will not have racial slurs thrown around about our allies. Besides that, your own sister sits upon the  
Thalidian throne, and I should think you could show a little more respect. Is that clear, Chamberlain?"

"Perfectly clear, Your Highness," Fortinbras answered reluctantly after a long silence.

"Now as I was saying," Daisy returned to the matter at hand, "the Thalidian ambassadors to Yoshi's Island have brought back some interesting news about an abandoned Koopa child bearing a striking resemblance to King Bowser's Eldest."

* * *

A short distance away from the site of the pompous ceremony, leaning against a tree and watching the procession, stood an outsider. This outsider, in contrast with the exceedingly formal ceremony, wore simple blue overalls, faded from the years of abuse inevitably suffered by work clothes, and a  
green shirt and cap bearing the same signs of years of use. The soles of the outsider's brown leather shoes were spilt, and would soon have to be replaced. This outsider was Luigi L. Mario, brother of the world-renowned hero, Mario M. Mario, and - it was rumored - the soon-to-be Prince Consort of  
Sarasaland.

From his distant perch, Luigi watched in awe as division after division of Sarasi troops marched ceremoniously by. 'Man,' he thought to himself, 'I sure wish Thalidia's army was that good. It'd give Mario and me a way easier time dealing with Bowser." Luigi watched until the last of the fifteen divisions had passed before approaching the assembly field quietly. He had been waiting all week to speak to a certain young princess.

* * *

"Chamberlain," Daisy commented formally as she faced Lord Fortinbras once the troops were back in place, "I am impressed. Your army is..." she fumbled for the proper word.

"Disciplined?" Fortinbras offered.

"Disciplined," Daisy agreed. "Disciplined, well-armed, and well-trained." She saluted, and waited for Fortinbras to return her salute.

'Is that all?' Fortinbras thought. 'She just sat here for half an hour watching 81,000 of Sarasaland's finest and all she can say is disciplined, well-armed, and well-trained?' He sighed inaudibly as he returned the princess' salute, with his usual pomp, and replied, "The Seventh Army of Birubuto thanks Your Highness for your remarks, and requests to be dismissed."

"You may dismiss the troops," Daisy smiled and dropped her salute. Fortinbras turned to face his army and went about dismissing them in his usual, over-ceremonial way, but Daisy wasn't sticking around for it. 'Finally,' she thought as she skipped hurriedly away from the assembly to meet the one person in the world she wanted to see more than any other. Her heart raced as she looked ahead of her and saw Luigi standing near the edge of the field. "Luigi!" she squealed and ran to him.

Luigi grinned broadly as Daisy rushed up to him. 'She's so much like a child sometimes,' he thought to himself.

Daisy, however, showed no childlike qualities at all as she flung herself into Luigi's awaiting arms and pressed her lips to his. "I've missed you, my love," she whispered in Luigi's ear.

"Missed me?" Luigi chuckled. "I've only been gone for a week."

"That's too long," Daisy insisted as she rested her head on Luigi's shoulder. "I get lonely here without you."

"Well, I've missed you too, Daisy," Luigi admitted.

"Hmm?" Daisy lifted her head and looked into Luigi's face. "What? No accent?" she asked, pretending to be disappointed.

Luigi sighed plaintively. "Daisy," he pleaded, "I've just gotten to the point where I can talk without that accent, and nobody took me seriously because of it."

"But it's cute!" Daisy insisted.

Luigi looked down at the pleading look on Daisy's face for a moment.

"Please..." Daisy added for effect.

"Alright," Luigi sighed, his Italian accent fully audible, "what-a the princess-a wants, the princess-a gets."

Daisy giggled innocently and kissed Luigi again. "Now, then," she began, twisting Luigi's moustache between her fingers, "what did you-"

Daisy was interrupted by the sound of someone clearing his throat beside her. She turned away from Luigi to see Lord Fortinbras standing next to her, doing his best to hide his disgust at the sight of Luigi.

Daisy sighed. It was just like Fortinbras to drop in when he was least wanted. She coughed slightly as she forced herself to step away from Luigi. "Do you wish to speak with me, Chamberlain?" she inquired formally.

"Yes, Your Highness," Fortinbras answered with a bow, and a distasteful glare at Luigi, "and I would prefer to say my peace in private, away from," he sneered at Luigi as he finished, "foreign ears."

"You will say what you have to say here, Minister," Daisy replied flatly.

"Your Highness..." Fortinbras argued.

"You will speak here, in public, Prime Minister," Daisy repeated, ending the debate. "I will not have rumors of secret discussions floating about in the Sarasi Court."

"As you wish, Your Highness," Fortinbras conceded, bowing once again. "What I wished to say, was that I was a bit surprised that Your Highness didn't stay for the entire ceremony."

Daisy rolled her eyes. "As though I didn't know what it would be like. You would stand there, barking commands at your staff, and all concerned would stand there for another half hour waiting for word to come down the chain of command that the ceremony was over and they could leave."

"And," Luigi intervened, his accent once again surpressed, "you couldn't expect the princess to just sit there while the whole army was dismissed, could you?"

Fortinbras clenched his teeth at the upstart interruption from the loathsome foreigner. "The very thing that makes the 7th Birubuto, as well as every other standing army in the Four Princedoms, so formidable is their attention to detail. No Sarasi soldier would skip any part of the ceremony for any reason, so it reflects very badly on the crown when the princess does. It is this attention to detail, more than anything, that makes our military the mightiest on the planet."

"Next to the Koopas," Luigi corrected.

"Greater than the Koopas," Fortinbras boasted, his chest swelling with pride to the point where Luigi was sure it would burst.

"Right," Luigi dodged an argument, "whatever. But, I don't see how this reflects badly on the crown. I mean, it's not like the princess is part of the military, right?" Luigi chuckled as he continued, "I swear, Fort, you act like all of Sarasaland is an army."

Fortinbras grinned as he replied, "Well, that's because it is." At the perplexed look on Luigi's face, he continued, "Sarasaland is completely a nation at arms; every citizen is expected to serve in the military from their sixteenth birthday until their sixty-fifth. Here, 'civilian' is just another word for 'retired'."

"It was a necessary step to keep another incident like the one with Tatanga from happening," Daisy elaborated. She couldn't keep the contempt out of her voice as she asked, "If the military wasn't so central to our government, then why would I subject myself to this ludicrous uniform?"

"Yes, well, about that uniform," Fortinbras interrupted, bringing the conversation back to it's original nature, "that's another thing I feel I must address."

"How so, Chamberlain?" Daisy pressed with a dangerous edge in her voice.

Realizing he was walking a razor's edge, Fortinbras chose his words carefully. "It's simply that it... doesn't quite project the image of dignity befitting a woman of your status. Remember, M'lady, you are the princess of Sarasaland."

"And what would you have me wear? That?" Daisy countered exasperatedly, motioning with her hand toward Fortinbras's uniform. "Or perhaps you'd prefer that hideous yellow thing in which I'm expected to flitter about at Court. No, I will wear what I choose to wear, Chamberlain, when I choose to wear it."

Fortinbras knew that it was pointless to argue with a 19-year-old princess, so he merely bowed, replying with "Yes, your Highness."

"Oh, and Chamberlain," Daisy added as an afterthought, "don't ever call me 'M'lady' again."

There was an awkward silence for a moment.

"Well, Chamberlain?" Daisy prodded at Fortinbras, stating quite clearly that he had best say something to justify his presence, or burden someone else with it.

"Yes, your Highness?"

"You may leave now."

"As you wish, Your Highness," Fortinbras surrendered with a deep sigh as he stalked off to find some unsuspecting recruit whose boots hadn't quite been shined to standard.

"I thought he'd never leave," Daisy whispered to Luigi when Fortinbras was out of earshot.

Luigi looked away. 'I guess now's as good a time as any to break the news to her,' he thought as he began. "Speaking of leaving," he said slowly, "I'm going to have to go back to Thalidia again soon, and this time I'll be gone for quite a while."

Daisy wasn't able to hide her surprise, or her disappointment. "Oh," she answered after a period of silence. "Why do you have to go so soon this time?"

Luigi sighed. "I have to go with Mario and Peach to meet with General Flutter in Monstro City."

"General?" Daisy repeated incredulously. "When did he earn a commission?"

"Eh, recently," Luigi replied. "But in any case, I'll be leaving again soon."

"I see," Daisy responded as she and Luigi began to walk away from the assembly feild. "So, why the sudden fixation on Monstro City?"

"Well," Luigi began as if he wasn't quite sure himself, "Peach said she had some kind of secret information for Flutter. I really don't know what it is, but she said she wanted Mario and me to come along."

Daisy bit her lip. She knew a great many things that that could mean, and she didn't like any of them. "You know, Luigi," she began with a deep sigh, "it sounds like..." her voice trailed off, and she began again. "I mean, that's the kind of thing that..." once again, she couldn't finish her thought.

"Darling," Luigi said, stopping and turning Daisy's face toward his, "what is it?"

Daisy stared at Luigi for a moment, as if summoning the courage to say what was on her mind. "It sounds to me," she finally declared, "like Peach is preparing for a war."

* * *

"What does she see in him anyway?" Fortinbras muttered as he stormed into his office in the Capitol of Birubuto. "He's a commoner. Not only that, but he's rude, uncultured," the Minister of Defense wrinkled his nose as he added, "and he has the social graces of a nokobon with a frayed fuse."

"And why should the princess care about his social graces?" interposed someone who had overheard Fortinbras' complaints. "It seems to me that the two of them are perfectly happy with each other." As Fortinbras looked up from his desk with a start, he saw a fairly squat Toadsman standing before him in the traditional blue of a Thalidian ambassador.

"Never mind that, Sir Toad," Fortinbras withdrew from the impending debate, "it's an internal Sarasi matter."

Toad cracked a smile in spite of his best efforts otherwise. Fortinbras seemed so different from Thalidia's Chancellor on the outside, but in reality they were so much alike. They both thought they knew exactly what was best for their people, they both distrusted foreigners, and neither of them could stand the possibility that the princess each of them represented might be married to a common man in what seemed like the near future. "In any case, Lord Fortinbras," Toad chuckled, taking the wheel of the conversation, "when you're through going over all the reasons why the princess should have nohing to do with the man who has saved her life on countless occasions, perhaps you would like to discuss the situation I came here to discuss."

"There is nothing to discuss," Fortinbras stated flatly. "Sarasaland has no quarrel with Thalidia, but we do not, and will not ever while I'm in office, have any intention of signing your treaty." He looked down at the papers on his desk for a moment before adding, "If you're looking for support in your war against Bowser, look elsewhere. I'm not going to plunge Sarasaland into the middle of a war that is, quite frankly, Thalidia's problem."

"And what happens if Bowser wins?" Toad countered. "What happens then, hmm? Or if Bowser just loses interest in Thalidia, what happens then? Where do you think he's going to turn his eyes next?"

Fortinbras glanced up at Toad for a moment, beginning to seem interested.

"I'll tell you where, Prime Minister: Sarasaland," Toad continued. "The Four Princedoms cover the greatest land area of any country on the planet, save for Thalidia, and contain the largest population."

"A population entirely ready to defend themselves against Bowser if need be," Fortinbras interrupted arrogantly. "Bowser has seen the power of Sarasi armed forces, and I assure you he'll think twice before waging war on us again."

"Oh, he's thought a lot more than twice already, Chamberlain. That much is certain." Toad decided now would be a good time to open the Prime Minister's eyes to what had been going on around him. "And your military just makes you that much juicier of a target. Haven't you noticed that border skirmishes between Muda and the Koopas have grown more frequent and more intense lately? Haven't you noticed that Easton has suddenly become more prone to monster infestations? And what about the rumors of a Koopa naval base ten miles from Chai's border?"

"That," Fortinbras cut in, "is a rumor, and nothing more."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Toad replied, "but it's all the same. Nimbus Land, Yoshi's Island, Monstro City, and yes, even Sarasaland... they've all taken losses to the Koopa Empire. It's no longer just Thalidia's problem. Do you remember Sarasaland after the fight with Tatanga?" 'Ah,' Toad thought, noticing the sudden change in Fortinbras's face, 'I said the magic T-word.' "I don't want to see that happen again, Chamberlain, and I doubt you do either."

Fortinbras wasn't taking the bait. "That won't happen again," he countered, "because we're ready this time."

"You're ready to deal with Bowser's Empire now," Toad agreed, "but what if the Koopa Empire were to suddenly increase in size a hundredfold?"

"That's ridiculous. How could that happen so suddenly?"

Toad's answer was simply a scroll placed on Fortinbras's desk. "Read that, if you would."

Fortinbras, now wrought with suspicion, proceeded to unroll the scroll and read it aloud. "The Treaty of Kappa Mountain?" he questioned after reading the opening articles of the scroll's contents.

"It names Bowser as the complete and total ruler of all Koopa clans, not just the clan of Morton," Toad explained. "And yes, I mean 'all'. Every Clan leader on the planet has ratified that treaty. The most common race on the planet now serves a single king, fights under a single banner, and works for a single goal."

Fortinbras sighed, and reluctantly nodded, understanding where Toad was leading. "And that goal," he agreed, "is a world enslaved by Bowser."

Fortinbras rose from his chair and slowly paced in front of his window, pondering the document Toad had just presented before him, wondering if it was authentic or not. At length, he sighed heavily, bracing himself for what he knew would eventually happen when he had said what he was about to say. "Ambassador Toad," he announced formally, "I'd like to take another look at your proposed alliance."

* * *

"So what you're telling me," Luigi mused, pretending he was interested in the conversation at hand, and that it wasn't just an excuse to spend time with Princess Daisy, "is that Ludwig supposedly has a twin?"

"Mm-hmm," Daisy nodded, "and this twin has come back to Bowser's Keep."

"That can't be good. I mean, that brings the Royal Family to 11: 8 Koopalings, Bowser and the Queen, and that halfling thing."

"But the surprising thing is this," Daisy pressed on. "Have you noticed that since this 'Aura' was first sighted, Bowser's plans seem to be failing more often? As if they're being sabotaged from within?"

Now Luigi was genuinely interested. "Izzat so?"

"And then, when we first learned about this twin, Bowser started having even more trouble from within. The doomship fleet hasn't enjoyed a victory in months, and the Yoshis are gaining the upper hand in Dinoland, despite Bowser's increased focus there."

A new thought struck Luigi. "D'you think that maybe that has something to do with Peach's sudden focus on Monstro City?"

Daisy wasn't quite following. "What does Monstro have to do with the Royal family?" she asked, wrinkling her nose in confusion.

"Maybe," Luigi continued more to himself than to Daisy, "she knows something else about this 'Aura' person, and Ludwig's twin." He paused, seeming to put together pieces of a great jigsaw puzzle in his head. "Maybe she thinks..." his voice trailed off, and his eyes slowly rose to meet Daisy's. "I have to talk to Fortinbras," he announced as he rose to his feet and quickly strode off to the Palace, leaving behind a very confused young princess.

* * *

"Ambassador, I know I'm going to regret this," Fortinbras sighed gloomily as he affixed his signature to the document in front of him.

"No, you won't," Toad assured him. "This treaty will be what future generations remember you for."

"Yes," agreed Fortinbras, "but for good, or ill?" he finished signing, and placed his quill on the table. "It still seems like a mistake plunging Sarasaland into a full-scale war against someone who hasn't threatened us yet."

"Hasn't threatened you yet?" Toad questioned. "Are you so sure?"

Fortinbras was confused. "What do you mean by that?"

Toad took a seat across the desk from Fortinbras and prepared himself for a long, in-depth conversation. "What about Apollyon?"

Fortinbras' eyes snapped toward Toad.

"Tell me about that incident, Prime Minister."

Fortinbras paused, sighed deeply, and glanced up at Toad. Clearly, the Thalidian ambassador knew that story, but he wasn't planning on leaving until Fortinbras was forced to remember every terrifying detail.

"I have to give you credit, Toad," Fortinbras conceded, "you're a tough negotiator." He cleared his throat, leaned back in his chair, and began his account of a battle from years before. "It was about four years ago when Bowser first launched the Doomship Fleet. This was when the Koopalings first launched their assault on your seven so-called 'Mushroom Worlds'." At that same time, Bowser launched a Doomship of his own; a monstrous, horrific doomsday machine called the KDS Apollyon. First constructed in the mountains over the subterranean realm- Dark Land, as you call it- he intended to use this ship to attack Thalidia itself, and the quickest route from there to Thalidia was right through Sarasaland's very heart."

"But you got wind of this," Toad interrupted.

"Yes," Fortinbras nodded, "yes, we did, and I for one wasn't happy with the report at all. So I rallied the newly commissioned Muda Air Force together to engage the ship before it got to Sarasaland's skies. We intercepted it, ironically enough, in the sky over the Valley of Bowser, right off the coast of Yoshi's Isle." Fortinbras closed his eyes as the unsettling memories flooded back over him. "It was the most terrifying day of my life. Apollyon was five miles long and had 122 decks, with torpedo turrets on its underbelly and countless myriad of Bill Blasters on every deck. On the main deck, it was lined with Bob-omb catapults, but the most horrifying thing was its main gun: a plasma cannon stronger than the ones onboard Crusher and Amadeus combined.

In the end, we managed to destroy its engine core, and that blew the ship right in half. The two segments were hurled into the sea in opposite directions by the blast, and its torpedo array was destroyed completely, with the pieces reported to have fallen as far away as Soda Lake. Even so, Bowser somehow survived." Fortinbras bit his lip as he began to emerge from the trance of one recalling a day best left forgotten. "It was the Air Force's first fight, and it ended with a victory for Sarasaland...  
...but it was a costly one indeed."

Toad was silent for a moment while he waited to make sure Fortinbras was finished. "You hit Bowser pretty hard that day," he observed. "No matter how bad your losses were I'm sure his were heavier, and I'll bet he hasn't forgotten that day."

Fortinbras snapped his eyes toward Toad once more. "Are you saying I'm the reason Bowser would attack Sarasaland?" he demanded dangerously.

"No," Toad replied, "no. Quite the contrary. I'm saying he more than likely would have crushed Sarasaland that very day if you hadn't stopped him. After all, it would have been no trouble at all: he could just pass over Sarasaland giving a show of force, finish his war against Thalidia, and present the now demoralized Sarasi with two options: surrender or die. Fortunately, you stopped him." Toad leaned forward, across Fortinbras' desk. "But don't think for a minute that Bowser has given up. No, your victory against Apollyon is just one more reason why you should never, for any reason let down your guard, especially when dealing with Bowser."

Fortinbras was about to reply when voices were heard outside the door.

"I'm sorry sir, but I can't let you in here."

"Look, I don't have time for this. I have to speak to the Prime Minister."

"I can't allow tha... Sir, No! Stop!"

The conversation ended with the door swinging open and Luigi striding into the room. "Fortinbras," he gasped, "we need to talk... Toad?"

"Luigi," Fortinbras sighed wearily, "I don't have the time for this. I'm in the middle of an important conversation here, and I-"

"Prime Minister," Toad interrupted calmly, "I know Luigi, and he wouldn't have interrupted us without good reason."

Fortinbras couldn't have disagreed more, but decided to hear Luigi out simply because he was too tired of arguing to get into a debate with the foreigner.

"Fortinbras," Luigi began, "I just heard that your spies have information about a Koopa Royal that seems to be Ludwig's twin brother, and-"

"What?!" bellowed Fortinbras, jumping up from his seat. "How did you hear about that? That information is classified!"

Luigi stared at Fortinbras for a moment and shrugged. "Daisy told me," he replied, as if that were a perfectly normal explanation.

Fortinbras sighed. "It seems there truly are no secrets between you two," he muttered, "even when there should be."

Luigi hesitated for a moment, and continued, "Well, anyway, I also heard that since this twin first appeared, Imperial operations have been failing left, right, and center."

"True," Fortinbras nodded. "And?"

"I think," Luigi began, "that there's more to that story, and I think this is what it is."

Now Fortinbras was interested.

"You may have noticed that Thalidia has been trying to improve relations with Monstro City lately. Well, there's a reason for that, and here's the fun part."

This time it was Toad who tried to silence Luigi. "Luigi," he cautioned, "I know where you're going with this, and that's classified."

"Oh, no, no," Fortinbras said in a mocking tone of voice. "He wouldn't have interrupted us without good reason."

"Will you two let me finish?!" Luigi sighed exasperatedly. "As I was trying to say, Peach and the Chancellor are doing this for two reasons. One has to do with two guests staying at the Thalidian palace right now: Monstermama, and Warlord Monstro."

Toad sighed, and slid down in his chair. "Good one, Luigi," he muttered.

"And the other," Luigi continued, "is because they have reason to think- get ready for this one- that Ludwig von Koopa is working with this twin and the Halfling known as 'Aura' in a rebellion against Bowser."

Fortinbras stared at Luigi for a moment, and began to laugh. "Am I supposed to believe that?"

"It's true," Toad sighed. "It's true. It was supposed to be classified, but since Luigi has so cleverly disclosed our secret," Toad stopped his lecture long enough for a distasteful glare at Luigi, "it's best you know the truth."

"And that truth is?" Fortinbras pressed.

"We do have reason to believe that Baron Von Koopa is involved in a rebellion, and here are the two bits of evidence. First, there's what we know of a recent attack on Monstro City by the Koopa Troop. A battalion of Bob-ombs was sent to attack the city from one side, and Amadeus was sent to attack from the other. The plan was seemingly foolproof, but something went wrong. A shot from Amadeus' main gun ripped through the ranks of the battalion, causing a chain reaction that detonated each one of them. Now, that could be written off as a misfire, but there's more. Instead of continuing the assault without the Bob-ombs, Amadeus ceased-fire and returned to Bowser's Keep."

"That could mean anything," sneered Fortinbras. "You'll have to come up with more convincing evidence than that."

"Very well then," Toad replied. "I will. The second thing is what Warlord Monstro saw that prompted him to leave Yoshi's Island and join the war against Bowser. He was watching the sky around the island, as usual, when he saw three Doomships approaching. He didn't know their names or commanders, but he said one of them was as big as the other two put together. That sounds like Amadeus. Now, he assumed they were on their way to Yoshi's Island as part of a Koopa attack on the isle, but before they got there they were ambushed by another Doomship which crippled all three of them. The attacking Doomship then moved on to Yoshi's Island with its main gun extended, and was moving in to attack the island when he shot it out of the sky with his own plasma cannon. Now, the scene of Doomships attacking Doomships tells me there was a rebellion involved somewhere, and If this Doomship was attacking Yoshi's Island, it was probably under Koopa control, as it should have been. So the only logical conclusion is that Amadeus and the other two weren't."

Fortinbras stared thoughtfully at the Thalidian Ambassador for a long time, contemplating whether or not he believed the tale. It was based entirely on circumstantial evidence, but still he somehow couldn't erase the nagging sensation that there was truth to it from the back of his mind, especially after reading his reports of internal sabotage somewhere in the top levels of the Koopa Empire.

"I'm not sure why," Fortinbras admitted, "but I believe you. Now, my question is, what difference does this make to me?"

"Because I'm supposed to accompany Peach to Monstro City soon," Luigi explained, "and I think this has something to do with the reason. I just thought it would be best if you knew what was going on, and I wanted to see if I should fill you in on what happens when I get back. You see-"

"Yes, Luigi," Fortinbras interrupted, "I see the implications. And yes, I would very much like you to report back to me when this trip to Monstro City is over."

Toad, by this time, would have gladly chosen to disappear into his chair, were he able to do so. "Is there any other classified information you'd like to give to the Prime Minister while we're here, Luigi?" he demanded sarcastically.

Luigi, taking the disclosure much less seriously than Toad, thought for a moment before jokingly continuing with, "Well, I could tell him the-"

"NO! NO! JUST SHUT UP! SHUT UP, LUIGI!" And with that, Toad rose from his chair, mumbled his farewell to Fortinbras, and stomped out the door and toward the nearest warp pipe to Thalidia.

"Well, Luigi," Fortinbras forced a smile as he glanced at Luigi, "it seems I was wrong about you. Sarasaland may need you after all."

Luigi saw right through Fortinbras' fake smile, but he played along. After all, Sarasaland DID need him, and it needed the information he was giving them, whether Thalidia was willing to give it to them or not. Something like a rebellion in the Koopa Empire didn't need to be kept classified. "I'm glad to hear it," he replied with a false smile of his own. "I'll be sure to keep you up-to-date." There was a brief pause before Luigi dismissed himself with, "If you'll excuse me, Prime Minister," and briskly walked out the door of Fortinbras' office.

Once Fortinbras was certain Luigi and Toad were out of earshot he called to the person who had been listening in from the next room. "Alright Ambassador Kamek, you can come out now."

* * *

Kamek, Guildmaster of the Magikoopa Sorcerers Guild, sat in the room adjacent to Fortinbras' office listening intently through the door to the conversation between Fortinbras and the Thalidian ambassador. "I don't believe it," he muttered. "That idiot is actually going to sign that treaty. In fact," the Guildmaster thought with disgust, "I'd almost say he was planning to do so from the start." The ancient Magikoopa sighed as he thought of what King Bowser's reaction would be to this. _We can't afford to fight alone against Thalidia, Sarasaland, and Monstro at the same time and still keep up our fight against the Yoshis, and the Treaty of Kappa Mountain isn't official yet. This could mean trouble._ Kamek continued to eavesdrop when something caught his attention. Kamek pressed his ear against the door and listened intently.

"I'm sorry sir, but I can't let you in here."

"Look, I don't have time for this. I have to speak to the Prime Minister."

"I can't allow tha... Sir, no! Stop!"

There was the sound of a door swinging open, followed by "Fortinbras, we need to talk," in a voice Kamek recognized with loathing as Luigi L. Mario, one of two Thalidians who had been a thorn in King Bowser's side for ages.

"What in blazes is he doing here?" Kamek grumbled.

Kamek tried to discern what Luigi was saying, but all he could hear was a umble of voices as Toad, Luigi, and Fortinbras all struggled to be heard over each other. Finally, the noise began to subside and Kamek was able to distinguish the voice of Luigi, and what he heard made his reptilian skin crawl.

"They have reason to think- get ready for this one- that Ludwig von Koopa is working with this twin and the halfling known as 'Aura' in a rebellion against Bowser."

Kamek was stunned. He had heard Bowser's suspicions that his eldest son had become a traitor, but to hear it from Luigi was more than he had expected. Could it be that Thalidia, watching Koopa affairs from a distance, had come to the same conclusion as Bowser? Could it be that Thalidia had seen what no one inside the Koopa Troop but Bowser had suspected? Certainly the evidence was all there, Kamek was forced to admit to himself. As Kamek continued to ponder over this, he was distracted again, this time by Toad.

"The second thing is what Warlord Monstro saw that prompted him to leave Yoshi's Island and join the war against Bowser."

Warlord Monstro?! What?! Kamek couldn't believe his ears, but there were more surprises to come.

"He was watching the sky around the island, as usual," Toad explained, "when he saw three doomships approaching. He didn't know their names or commanders, but he said one of them was as big as the other two put together. That sounds like Amadeus."

Kamek narrowed his eyes. He knew what mission Toad was talking about. It was the first mission where Ludwig's twin and the halfling were placed in command of doomships, and new ones at that. This mission was one that had been shrouded in suspicion since its failure. Maybe, he thought darkly, this was a good time to find out what had really happened, and Toad just might have the answers Kamek's master wanted.

"Now, he assumed they were on their way to Yoshi's Island as part of a Koopa attack on the isle," Toad continued, "but before they got there they were ambushed by another doomship which crippled all three of them. The attacking doomship then moved on to Yoshi's Island with it's main gun extended, and was moving in to attack the island when he shot it out of the sky with his own plasma cannon."

Kamek fumed. Was that how it really happened? Amadeus had been ambushed by a doomship? Only Amadeus and its sister ships were intended for that attack. The commanders of all four doomships had claimed they were ambushed by a plasma cannon from Yoshi's Island, and that the fourth vessel had "come to their rescue". With no evidence to the contrary, King Bowser had been forced to accept their dubious explanation. But now, Toad told a new story. Kamek's master would be interested.

In any case, that was all the shock Kamek could stand for one day. Stunned, he made his way away from the door and back to a chair in the center of the room to wait for Fortinbras to summon him.

Kamek couldn't be sure how long he'd sat there in that state before he heard Fortinbras call from his office. "Alright, ambassador Kamek. You can come out now."

Kamek rose from his chair and stepped into Fortinbras' office to find Fortinbras looking back at him from across his desk, apparently braced for the conversation he knew was ahead. "I'm disappointed, Prime Minister," Kamek said with a shake of his head. "I thought you had more insight than that."

Fortinbras sighed. "I'd be lying, ambassador, if I said I didn't see this coming. I've known for some time that Sarasaland couldn't remain neutral forever."

"True," Kamek conceded, "true. But why Thalidia? I came here to propose that you side with us. After all, you aren't exactly Thalidia's biggest supporter, from what I'm told. Why then did you choose to enter into a treaty with them, against your better judgment?"

Fortinbras decided it was time to end the charade. "Because, ambassador, I knew that if I didn't sign it, then I would have been tempted to sign your treaty instead. I'm not willing to do that, Kamek. I won't fight against my own sister."

His sister? Kamek didn't understand. What did she have to do with... "Oh, I see," Kamek sighed as understanding first came to him. "Is that what this was about, Prime Minister? Is it about your sister?" The Guildmaster rolled his eyes at what he considered a trivial concern. "Peach could have been spared, Fortinbras. After we conquer Thalidia there will be a need for a puppet government. It wouldn't have been difficult to spare your sister, and even leave her on the throne. She would have been perfectly safe, and lived out her life in complete comfort. In the meantime, you would have been rid of a problem of your own: Luigi."

Fortinbras clenched his fists at the reminder. He had thought of that, and the prospect of eliminating Luigi so that a more suitable partner for the princess could be found was tempting. But nonetheless, Fortinbras was more comfortable siding with Thalidia than the Koopa Empire. Thalidia, at least, hadn't launched Apollyon. "Consider this, Kamek," Fortinbras countered. "If I had signed your treaty and we had prevailed against Thalidia then once you conquered Monstro City, Sarasaland would be the only major power left in the world that isn't under Koopa control. So instead of facing three separate nations with three separate agendas, we'd find ourselves surrounded by a single hostile, expansion-minded force on all sides. What would become of Sarasaland then?"

Kamek didn't respond. He knew there was no point in continuing the argument. Instead, he turned away, realizing what he now had to do. "Well, Lord Fortinbras," he sighed again, "I suppose this is the end of diplomatic relations between our two cultures."

"I suppose so, ambassador," Fortinbras agreed, "which means it's best that you leave now."

"Indeed it is," Kamek agreed, drawing his wand and beginning to cast a spell. "But before I leave, I want to make one thing known."

"And that is?"

Kamek whirled around, pointing his now glistening wand dead into Fortinbras' face. "I'm no ambassador, and I'm not here on a diplomatic mission."

* * *

Luigi stalked through the halls of the Sarasi palace, too deep in thought to even bother with his usual greetings to the servants running this way and that, tending to the day-to-day business of maintaining the Royal residence. He was so deep in thought that he almost didn't hear a voice calling from behind him, trying to catch up to him.

"Luigi, wait! Luigi, do you hear me?"

Luigi looked over his shoulder, startled by the interruption, and saw Daisy running toward him. "Oh, Your Highness," he greeted with a bow. "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

"I noticed," shot back an out-of-breath Princess Daisy as she came to a stop next to Luigi and placed her hands on her hips. "Luigi, what's going on? One minute we were sitting in the palace garden talking, and the next you shot like lightning out of the garden and up to Fortinbras' office muttering some gibberish about Monstro and..."

Luigi placed his hand on her shoulder to calm her. "Daisy," he said  
softly, "it's alright. Don't be so worried."

The gesture seemed to partly sedate Daisy, but she still wanted answers. "Luigi," she sighed, "what's going on here? Talk to me."

Luigi hesitated. He really didn't have the time to explain it. He needed to return to Thalidia. And besides, was it really worth worrying her over matters that he and Fortinbras could take care of by themselves? Did she really need to know the alarming truth? In the end, Luigi decided she did. She was, after all, the princess of Sarasaland, and this was most definitely a Sarasi problem now. There was no other way.

However, Luigi realized, he didn't have to break the news to her himself. "Daisy," he began, "I'd tell you, but I think it's best if you just talk to Fortinbras about it."

Daisy crossed her arms indignantly. "Why's that?" she demanded.

"I just think he could explain it better than I could."

Daisy wasn't buying it. "Try again."

"Look, Daisy, I... I just..."

"You just don't think I can handle it," said Daisy as she threw her hands in the air. "Luigi, I'm no child. I'm the princess of Sarasaland, and from the way you were talking, I get the feeling something is about to go on in my country that I need to know about." She softened her voice a little as she continued, "I'd rather hear it from you then Fortinbras, because I know I can trust you."

Luigi hated to admit it to himself, but he knew she was right. "Alright, Daisy, I'll tell you. But the fact is I really don't know what's going on. I know what you told me about a Koopa twin and a Yoshi-Koopa appearing suddenly out of nowhere, and I know what Peach has told me. Beyond that, I have nothing but guesses and theories." He stopped, wondering if he should finish his thought. "And a great many fears."

Daisy realized by now that she would get no answers from Luigi. "Alright," she conceded, "I'll ask Fortinbras about it. But you're going with me."

"Daisy," Luigi started to protest.

"That's an order!" Daisy announced flatly, ending the debate. And with that, the two of them returned to the Prime Minister's office for a conversation Luigi knew he wasn't going to remember fondly.

Luigi had no idea how right he was, because at that moment the sound of an explosion echoed through the halls, and the sound came from Fortinbras' office.

"What was that?" Daisy gasped.

"I don't know," Luigi replied suspiciously. He looked toward Daisy and said only two words. "Wait here." With that, Luigi darted to the office he had just left, hoping he could get there in time to stop whatever was happening.

* * *

Fortinbras ducked to avoid the blast from Kamek's wand and threw himself on the floor behind his desk. He knew better than to put his head back up, because Kamek would be expecting it. As Fortinbras reached for the Super Flower hidden on the underside of his desk, another blast of magic exploded against the wall, passing right through the space where Fortinbras's chest would have been had he stood up. Fortinbras heard Kamek let out a surprised grunt at the miss.

The Prime Minister recognized his chance to act. He tore a petal from the Super Flower. As it began to flame, he threw the fireball that the petal had become over the desk and in what he hoped was Kamek's direction. Clutching the Super Flower close to him, he rolled out from behind the desk and threw himself forward, trying to catch the guildmaster off guard. He failed, and he paid for it. No sooner had Fortinbras begun to charge forward than he felt an intense burning pain shoot throughout his body as he flew backward from the blast of fiery force from his enemy's wand.

"You disappoint me, Prime Minister," Kamek gloated. "I expected more of a fight from a battle-hardened Sarasi warlord. Oh yes, that's right," he mocked. "You've never actually been in battle, have you?"

Fortinbras picked himself up off the ground and looked for his Super Flower. "You seem to be forgetting something, Guildmaster," he returned the snide insult. "If I've never been in battle, then what happened to your almighty airship Apollyon? Who sent it to the bottom of the sea on its maiden voyage?" As he said this, Fortinbras found the Super Flower. He had let go of it when the blast hit him, and it was halfway across the office. He tried to get up and run toward it, but his legs couldn't support him. He was too weak from Kamek's bolt of energy, so he began crawling toward it.

"An airship is one thing," Kamek sneered at his fallen foe, "an enemy who can look you in the eye is another. So tell me, Prime Minister: have you ever truly known fear until now?"

As Kamek finished his torrent of remarks, Fortinbras reached the Super Flower. Kamek, however, didn't seem to notice yet. "What I've never known until now," Fortinbras laughed, "is someone who talks so much when he should be finishing his enemy off!"

Before Kamek could make sense of that, Fortinbras rolled onto his side, crushed the Super Flower blossom in his hand, and hooked the entire now-flaming mass at Kamek, hitting him square in the chest. Kamek screamed in agony as his cloak caught fire, and immediately cast a spell to douse the flames. No sooner had he done this than he felt something heavy land squarely on his shoulders, knocking him to the floor. This was the wooden door of Fortinbras's office: Luigi's gift to Kamek upon his arrival on the scene.

"Kamek," Luigi exclaimed, "what in the..." Nevermind, Luigi thought. It doesn't matter why he's here. What matters is getting rid of him.

Kamek picked himself up from underneath the door. "Luigi," he sighed, more annoyed than frightened. "This is a revolting development."

"I'm sure it is," Luigi razzed the Guildmaster. "And so will this be."

As Luigi said this, Kamek felt a tremendous push from behind him and found himself pinned to the floor. It was Fortinbras, struggling to strike at Kamek while he was still focussed on Luigi. Kamek, by now, had had enough. He irately raised his wand and...

"My wand!" Kamek gasped. "Where is it?!"

"Looking for this?" came Luigi's voice from somewhere above Kamek. Desperately, Kamek writhed his way out from under Fortinbras. Just as he came to his feet, he found himself flying backward through the air with stars swirling around his field of vision as Luigi swung the wand and quickly and forcefully connected its tip with Kamek's head.

"Well Kamek," Luigi sneered, "I guess this glorified toothpick is good for something after all."

Kamek shook his head to clear his senses. "Indeed," he agreed with a grin. "Why don't I show you just how much good it can do?" At that moment Kamek thrust his hand toward Luigi. Before Luigi realized it the wand had freed itself from his grip and flown across the office into Kamek's awaiting hand. Kamek, his wand in his possession again, turned toward Fortinbras to finish the job he had begun. It was all too easy, he thought. In just two shots he would rid himself and his master not only of Apollyon's destroyer, but Luigi as well.

Unfortunately for him, it was not to be so.

"Wha.. what?" Kamek stammered, staring at the empty space where Fortinbras had been only moments before. "Where...?"

"Right here, Guildmaster," Fortinbras announced triumphantly from the doorway.

As Kamek spun around toward the door, he found Fortinbras surrounded by a squad of uniformed soldiers, each with a Super Flower pointed directly at Kamek. On either side of Fortinbras was an additional guard helping the wounded Defense Minister to stand.

"I'd like to introduce you, Kamek, to a few of Sarasaland's Finest:" Fortinbras declared, "Shock Troopers from the 7th Birubuto, alerted by all those fireballs you keep mindlessly throwing around."

Kamek looked around the room nervously. If he moved, he was a casualty, and if he didn't, he was a Sarasi P.O.W. He knew that. With a sigh, he resigned himself to the knowledge that his mission had failed. Disgusted, he glared at Fortinbras. "You know, Prime Minister," he growled, "we had every intention of letting you be our ally."

"We, who?" Fortinbras countered.

"King Bowser and myself," Kamek answered. "But you wouldn't listen to reason, so I had no choice but to have you 'removed from office' in the hope that your successor would be more open-minded."

"Well," Fortinbras replied, "you failed. Let's move on now." Fortinbras was about to signal his guards to have Kamek taken into custody and hurled into the palace dungeon, but Kamek cut him off.

"Oh, make no mistake, Prime Minister," the Guildmaster grinned, if I wanted to, I could kill you all and set this palace ablaze, but then where would King Bowser's residence be when we crush this miserable nation?" Kamek afforded one last glance at Luigi. "So, plumber, you're traveling to Monstro City in the near future? And Warlord Monstro is with you, you say? Well, I certainly hope Monstro City is still there when you arrive." And with that cryptic threat, Kamek waved his wand and disappeared in a ball of flame.

Luigi, Fortinbras, and the guards stood in silence for a moment. "Well," Luigi pointed out the obvious, "he got away."

"Yes," Fortinbras nodded, "he did. But I nearly didn't." With a wave he dismissed the guards, and turned angrily toward Luigi. "Who asked you to interfere anyway?" He paused to make sure he could stand up before insisting "I had everything under control!"

Luigi stared at Fortinbras in shock for a moment before slowly shaking his head. "Right," he sighed. "I can see that you did."

Fortinbras took a few steps to make sure he was in control of his legs again before conceding, "I suppose you'll want an explanation for all this."

Luigi looked back at Fortinbras. "An explanation?" he asked in  
confusion. "You mean you have one?"

Fortinbras sighed and returned to his seat at his desk, which had somehow escaped destruction during the fighting. "Have a seat, Luigi," he insisted, motioning to the chair in front of the desk.

Luigi was eager indeed to hear the Prime Minister's explanation, so he sat across from Fortinbras as requested.

"Before I begin," Fortinbras announced, "I have to say I would like to  
keep this hidden from the princess for now."

"The reason being?" Luigi asked suspiciously.

"I just would rather inform her myself than have her come storming in here demanding to know why she heard it from you first," Fortinbras replied.

Luigi nodded. In reality, he had no intention of keeping this from Daisy, but he wasn't about to let Fortinbras know that.

"The first thing you need to know," Fortinbras began, "is that I knew Kamek was here. In fact, I allowed him to come into the palace."

"You did what?!" Luigi shouted, nearly leaping out of his seat.

"Please," Fortinbras attempted to silence him, "sit down and hear me out." As Luigi forced himself to sit back down, Fortinbras continued. "He was here calling himself an ambassador, claiming to have in mind a treaty between Sarasaland and the Koopas. Who knows? Maybe that was his goal. I don't know. But in any case, he had been here for weeks trying to convince me at every opportunity that Thalidia was as much a threat to Sarasaland as it was to the Koopa Troop. And I have to admit, he had almost convinced me when  
word came to me that Ambassador Toad was on his way. That, I suppose, was just the opportunity Kamek was waiting for."

Fortinbras rose from his seat and stepped over to his enormous window overlooking the parade grounds before continuing. "Kamek was adamant that Toad was actually a spy, and that he was not to be trusted. I doubted this, of course, but Kamek's resolve wasn't dampened in the least. Finally, he persuaded me to allow him to listen in on my conversation with Toad from my chamber, to 'make sure Toad didn't try anything.' I knew it was ludicrous, but I agreed to it to appease Kamek. So, when I signed Toad's treaty..." The Prime Minister stopped himself, but not soon enough. "I shouldn't have said that."

Luigi shook his head. "I would have found out soon enough anyway, Fortinbras, either from Daisy or from Peach. What I want to know is this."

"Yes?"

"WHAT IN BLAZES WERE YOU THINKING?!" Luigi practically vaulted over the desk reaching for the Prime Minister's throat. "You allowed the Guildmaster of the Magikoopas to waltz in here calling himself an ambassador, discussed signing an alliance with Bowser, and gave Kamek the perfect opportunity to ambush Toad and me, and you did it all in one single, unparalleled act of... of..."

"I think 'stupidity' is the word you're looking for," Daisy finished for him from just outside the door, where she had been standing hidden from Fortinbras and Luigi's eyes. "Then again," the princess said in mock contemplation as she entered the Prime Minister's office, "'Idiocy' springs to mind. But as for me," she glared almost murderously at Lord Fortinbras, "I was thinking more along the lines of 'treason'!"

Fortinbras lost all track of what little of his usual bearing he had managed to maintain at the entrance of Princess Daisy. "Uh... you... You're Highness," he struggled to find a way to explain himself. "I... I..."

"You," Daisy finished for him, "have just done the stupidest thing of your career, Chamberlain. And believe me, it's had some competition for that title." She stepped up to Fortinbras furiously. She had to stare almost  
straight up to see his face, but Fortinbras felt as though she towered over him like the pyramids of Muda. "You know, Chamberlain, you're extremely lucky your office as Defense Minister is a difficult one to fill, or I would have you court-martialed." She spun around and stepped toward Luigi, her heels clicking dangerously on the hard wooden floor of the office as she went. "As it is, Fortinbras, I'm going to keep this conversation between the three of us. But let me make one thing as clear as the seas of Chai. If you ever, EVER allow a Koopa operative inside the borders of Sarasaland, regardless of how many ambassadorial titles he claims to have, I'll have him thrown into the prison at Rosengrad," she paused to let Fortinbras take that threat in, "in a cell right next to yours. Understood, Chamberlain?"

"Perfectly, You're Highness," Fortinbras gulped.

"Wonderful," Daisy clipped. "Now if you will excuse me, Prime Minister, I must speak with Luigi."

"Uh, Daisy," Luigi began, then caught his mistake. "I mean 'You're Highness', if you don't mind, I'd like to have a word with Fortinbras first... in private."

In the midst of her tirade of taking charge, Daisy still managed to look a bit hurt by Luigi's comment. "Oh," she digressed. "Well, if that's the case," she made a great show of attempting to put forth her in-charge face again, "I'll leave you two alone." And with that, the princess pointed her nose haughtily at the ceiling and stalked out the door.

Luigi sighed as he fell into the chair he had been sitting in before. "Geez," he moped. "Now I've done it." He glared out the corner of his eye at Fortinbras. "She thinks I picked talking to you over talking with her. I guess it'll take a lot of groveling to get back on her good side."

"Tell me about it," Fortinbras muttered.

"But Fortinbras," Luigi returned his mind to the matter at hand, "there was something Kamek said that confuses me, and I want you to have your intelligence sources inside Bowser's Keep look into it."

"And that is?"

"I want to know what Kamek meant by that 'I hope Monstro City is still there' comment."

* * *

"Guildmaster Kamek," came the aged voice of a Koopa witch as Kamek appeared in the Magikoopa's Guild common room deep in the bowels of Dark Land, "I wasn't expecting you. To what do I owe-"

"Not now. Kammy," Kamek griped as he stormed past the witch and down the hall toward his private chamber. He didn't want to face anybody right now with the embarrassing news of his failure, least of all his former apprentice.

So, Kammy stood there for a while, unsure of what to say. "Kamek, wait," she called after him finally.

Kamek aggravatedly stopped, turned around and answered, "What do you want, Kammy?"

"What I want, Kamek," Kammy declared, dropping all formalities, "is to know what crawled under your robe and died, not to mention what you're doing here. I thought you were in Sarasaland negotiating a treaty."

"The negotiations were cut short," Kamek responded indignantly, "but not before I had to take on a more... aggressive diplomatic approach."

Kammy threw her hands skyward and groaned. "Oh, don't tell me: Fortinbras wouldn't sign the treaty because you flew off your broomstick and started mindlessly throwing fireballs around his office. Am I right?"

"No," Kamek muttered through gritted teeth. "If you must know, I started mindlessly throwing fireballs around his office because he woudn't sign the treaty. Are you quite happy now?"

Clearly, the answer was no. "What do you mean 'he wouldn't sign the treaty?' Has he lost his mind?"

"Yes," Kamek replied, "he has. He has so thoroughly lost his mind that he let me listen in as he entered into a moronic alliance with..." he stopped, having to force himself to spit out the remainder of that sentence. "... with the Mushroom Kingdom."

"The Mushroom Kingdom?" Kammy spat. "What… why?"

"I don't know, Kammy," Kamek bellowed, "Now will you go away?"

Kammy ignored the Guildmaster's irritated request. "You should tell Lord Bowser about this."

Kamek couldn't contain his sarcasm any longer. "Oh, do you think so? Great astral forces, Kammy, I would've never guessed." He turned away from Kammy and began to skulk. He did indeed have to speak with Bowser, and there were more important matters than an unsigned treaty to deal with. But right now, Kamek couldn't afford to face his king, not after his double-failure in Sarasaland. He didn't like it, but Kamek realized he would have to send Kammy to deliver the message for him. "Kammy," he said, glancing back over his shoulder at her, "there is one other thing that Lord Bowser should have brought to his attention."

"And that is?"

"He's planning to attack Monstro City in a few weeks with three doomships. I assume you know this."

Kammy nodded her understanding.

"Then you know that even after their... suspicious performance the last time they were deployed, His Lordship is counting on the Amadeus and its sister ships for the attack."

Kammy shifted uncomfortably. She had known this, and she had not thought it wise of Bowser at all.

"I learned something in Sarasaland that makes me think..." Kamek hesitated. Did he really want to tell Kammy? True, she already suspected the baron and his entourage of treason, but did he really want to erase all doubt from her mind? In the end, he had no choice. He turned around, looked Kammy in the eye, and announced, "I heard something that suggests Baron Ludwig, his twin, and his halfling fiancee are plotting a coup, and it's my strong recommendation that Bowser reconsider his decision..." he let himself and Kammy both recover from this statement before adding, "to say nothing of keeping a close watch over Baron Ludwig."

* * *

"So, Luigi," Lord Fortinbras recapitulated, "I suppose now Sarasaland has no choice but to wage war on Bowser. You've gotten your way at last."

"It looks that way," Luigi nodded.

"And I suppose," Fortinbras confessed, "your experience dealing with Bowser will make you essential to the Four Princedoms."

Luigi nodded again. "Most likely, yes."

"But understand one thing, Luigi," Fortinbras snarled as he leaned across his desk toward Luigi. "This does not mean, nor will it ever mean that my opinion of you has been raised even a microbe. As far as I'm concerned you're still a foreign menace and a troublemaker, and most definitely not a fit consort for Her Highness. And make no mistake, I have no intentions of letting you pollute her head with your foreign ideals and Thalidian ways."

Luigi looked confused. "Where did that come from? I'm talking about making sure Sarasaland is ready for the confrontation to come, and you're demonizing me again as twenty different kinds of trouble. Geez, Fort, it seems like you could at least show a little gratitude. After all, I did kind of save your life."

"Yes," Fortinbras interrupted, "and I'm sure you hated every minute of it. But don't even begin to deceive yourself. I don't trust you for a minute. In fact, I'd sooner trust Kamek again. At least he made his intentions known from the start."

"Did he?"

"Don't try to distract me. It won't work." Fortinbras waited a moment for Luigi's response. Hearing none, he finished with, "I'll be watching you very closely, Luigi. You are dismissed."

With that dismissal, Luigi stood up and left Fortinbras' office. As Fortinbras suspiciously watched him leave, he thought to himself. True, Luigi would be invaluable to Sarasaland's defense in the near future. And it was true, Luigi had saved him and most likely everyone in the palace from Kamek. As much as Fortinbras hated to admit it to himself, the foreigner was a hero. Much like his brother, Fortinbras felt himself sink as he thought, much like his brother.

Well, Fortinbras decided, I will indeed be watching you, Luigi...  
...just like your brother.


	3. Chapter 2: Angels and Archangels

Chapter Two: Angels and Archangels

It was March 31 in the year 64,128 A.D. by the Calendar of Sarasaland, and the time was 1430 hours. However, in the Thalidian city of Seaside, few people knew or cared. After all, who needed to know how those bizarre militants on the other side of the world kept track of time anyway? All that mattered was that they were finally joining Thalidia in the Great War. Such was the mind set of the sailors and townspeople in Seaside. However, while Sarasi timekeeping was a detail that received little attention except by clerics, the arrival of Sarasi naval and aerial forces in Seaside was on the forefront of the minds of the townspeople as well as all of Thalidia as the carrier vessels for Sarasaland's Easton Air Force sailed into dry-docks at Seaside.

The people of Seaside watched in wonder as the grandiose fleet floated swiftly and gracefully into port. "Would ya look at that," whispered one awestruck bystander. "Even the princess' navy don't have ships such 's that."

"And get a load o' them airships they're carryin'," added another. "Great bones o' Johnny Jones, I'm glad they're on our side."

As the townspeople continued to marvel at the vessels, debating amongst themselves whether they thought these craft had strength to match their magnificence, the Flagship of the carrier fleet docked at a debarking ramp near the shore. The people were so enthralled with the vision of the ships that very few of them noticed. They didn't notice the gangplank extending from the Flagship. They didn't even notice as a uniformed Sarasi officer who dwarfed any man in the port stepped down the gangplank and into Seaside,  
carrying his Shako Cap under his arm. The man stopped and surveyed the town appraisingly as he entered its boundaries for a moment, and it was clear from his curling of his lips that the town was not to his liking. He popped his knuckles, dusted off his epaulets, shook the sand from his boots, and pulled his long white hair out of his face and over his shoulder as he stepped up to one of the dumbfounded townsfolk.

"You," the officer greeted condescendingly, "my name is Lord Fortinbras, commodore of these ships. I'm looking for the master of this port."

The Thalidian looked up at the Sarasi officer towering over him with a wonder that bordered on fear. "If you'd be meanin' the mayor o' Seaside, skipper, he won't take a visit from just anyone who walks in. So unless yer some kind o' nobility..."

Fortinbras rolled his eyes. "So titles of nobility are the game, are they?" he thought aloud, interrupting the Thalidian sailor's speech. "Let me introduce myself again. I'm Lord Fortinbras, Prime Minister and Lord Chamberlain of the Four Princedoms of Sarasaland, Minister of their Defense, Commander of the 7th Army of Birubuto, Legionnaire General of the Birubuto Princedom, Commodore of the Easton Regal Navy, and Martial of the Easton Air Force." Once Fortinbras was certain the man standing before him was sufficiently awed he presented his query again. "Now where can I find this mayor?"

* * *

Mayor Martine of Seaside looked out his window at the Sarasi fleet sailing into his city with almost as much wonder as the people standing on the docks. "It isn't everyday you get to see a sight like that," he thought aloud to himself. "But my question..." That thought was interrupted by a knock at his door. The mayor glanced at his butler, letting him know to answer the knock.

The butler strode toward the door, opened it, and formally inquired, "Please state your business with Mayor Martine."

"My name is Lord Fortinbras, and-"

That was all the mayor needed to hear. "Let him in," he quickly instructed the butler. He ran toward the door just in time to see the butler step out of the way for Lord Fortinbras, who had to lower his head to fit in the doorway. "Lord Fortinbras," Mayor Martine greeted excitedly as he shook the Sarasi Defense Minister's hand, "it's an honor to meet you. I got a letter by carrier pigeon from Princess Peach just yesterday saying that I should expect your fleet to arrive, but I had no idea it would be so soon. I apologize for the..."

The mayor continued in such a fashion for what felt to Fortinbras like hours, but Fortinbras managed to tune him out. He hated when people reacted this way to him, all handshakes and slavish flattery and excited babble. _Why_, thought Fortinbras, _can't the rest of the world be more like me: strictly business?_ "Mayor Martine," Fortinbras forced the mayor to take a breath in his speech before he passed out, "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I'm here for a reason."

"Oh, of course," the mayor subsided. "What can the people of Seaside do for you, Prime Minister?"

"It's very simple, Mayor," Fortinbras answered. "With your kind permission, I'd like to grant my troops three days of much-needed shore leave in your port before we set sail for Toadtown and Spore City."

"Shore leave?" the mayor asked incredulously. "Here? For every sailor in your fleet?"

Fortinbras bit his lip. It was a difficult request, he had to admit. It seemed he had overstepped his bounds. "Perhaps you're right, Mayor," Fortinbras conceded after a few moments. "I apologize for the intrusion. My ships will be out of your harbor once we've purchased the necessary supplies." And with that, Fortinbras started toward the door, but Martine grabbed him by the arm before he could leave.

"Milord," the mayor said with a smile, "Forgive my reaction. It would be my pleasure to grant your fleet shore leave."

The change in demeanor seemed too sudden for Fortinbras. "Are you certain, Mayor? True enough, the furlowe is badly needed, but I'm not here to be a strain on Thalidia."

Martine shrugged, still smiling. "An entire fleet of Sarasi sailors, spending their coin in my town? Trust me, Milord. It's no strain."

* * *

That same day at 1700 hours, on the main deck of the Sarasi carrier ship _Hero's Glory_, two hundred Sarasi pilots waited eagerly for the gangplank to be extended so they could debark and enjoy their first steps on dry land in weeks. These were the pilots of the Red Angel Wing: Lord Fortinbras' own air unit and the pride of the Easton Air Force.

"Why won't they let us off?" asked one impatient pilot.

"I don't know," answered another, "but if they don't let us off soon I'm going up to the bridge to have a little chat with our 'beloved captain'."

"Whose idea was it to give that lunkhead his own command anyway?" Sneered a third. "He's a Thalidian, and last I checked this was a Sarasi wing, carried by the Sarasi Navy."

"Well, you know," commented the first of the three, "Lord Fortinbras is a Thalidian too."

"Well, yeah, but that's different. I mean, he's Fortinbras."

The three were interrupted by the sound of booted feet coming toward them. They all turned and found themselves staring at a fairly tall man with a black mustache, wearing the gray uniform of the Sarasi Military with the rank of Captain on his collar. Strangely enough for someone of his rank, the Captain sported no medals. On the right side of his uniform just below the seam he wore a black nameplate that read "L. Mario". "Gentlemen," the captain greeted coolly, "am I interrupting anything?"

The three pilots exchanged nervous glances. "No," answered one. "Nothing, sir."

"Good," replied the captain, Luigi L. Mario. "I want to let you know that the gangplank will be extended momentarily and you can debark. I just thought you'd want to see _Archangel_ when she arrives."

The three pilots gasped in unison. "_Archangel_?"

The Luigi nodded. "Lord Fortinbras' own airship," he agreed. "Her carrier'll be sailing into the harbor in minutes. In fact," he pointed over the shoulders of the three pilots, "there she is now."

The three pilots spun around to see this. As they did they saw another ship sailing into Seaside's port and their jaws dropped in awe. It was true. This was _Archangel_'s own carrier ship. Even from the deck of _Hero's Glory_ they could see the Prime Minister's notorious warship tied down on the landing deck.

"Wow," whispered the second pilot, "she's a beauty."

_She sure is_, thought Luigi. Luigi took his time looking over every facet of the ship. It was a juggernaut-class ship, with twin elevation pontoons. It was somewhat triangular and flat in shape, with hyper-aerodynamic contours that traced from its nosecone down to its short, backward-curving wings. On the top of the ship were three rotors for maneuvering the ship, and at the back were three more for propulsion. But as amazing as the ship was to behold, Luigi knew that its most amazing feature was what he and the three pilots couldn't see from where they were.

The ship was built for combat, and in combat she was a predator. This was the thought on the minds of Luigi and the three pilots as the first pilot began reciting her statistics. "You know," the pilot marveled, "she's armed to the teeth. Twin flame throwers (powered by Super Flowers of course) on the forward and aft arrays, sixteen P.O.P cannons on each side of the keel, and then," the pilot grinned an almost sinister grin, "there's her main gun."

Luigi's ears perked up. "I've heard about it," he agreed, "and they say it's some kind of prototype weapon, but I don't know what it its exactly. What is it? A Koopa plasma cannon?"

The pilot shook his head. "Ooooh, no. It's a lot meaner than that. The main gun is a pressurized liquid nitrogen cannon."

That didn't make any sense to the other two pilots. "A what?" they asked in unison.

"A pressurized liquid nitrogen cannon," explained the first pilot. "You see, nitrogen gas turns to liquid at a very low temperature. In fact, it's such a low temperature that it can freeze almost anything on contact. And this cannon uses a high-pressure nozzle to spray the stuff."

"It's a freeze gun," commented Luigi. Suddenly, a new thought entered his mind and he couldn't help but snicker. "Heh, I'll bet Mario wishes the Sky Pop had packed that kind of firepower." The three pilots chuckled at that. "But that's enough drooling over the Archangel," Luigi declared. "She'll still be there later, and right now I think you three, and the rest of the wing, would like to get off this boat."

All three pilots grinned. "Sir," answered the third pilot, "you have no idea."

Luigi smiled. "Well, then I'll give the order to extend the gangplank. But first, I need to tell you three one thing." Luigi's entire expression changed as he stepped right up into the face of the third pilot. "If I ever hear another word out of your mouth asking why a 'lunkhead' like me was put in command of this ship, all three of you will be on the next transport back to Birubuto to take the matter up personally with Princess Daisy. Got it?"

Three sets of feet shuffled uncomfortably.

"Well?"

"Understood, sir," they sounded off in unison.

"Good," Luigi nodded. "Now get off my ship."

The three pilots didn't need any further prompting. Before Luigi had even had time to tongue-lash them on their way down to the gangplank they were out of his sight.

"Why did I let Daisy talk me into this whole 'Navy' thing?" Luigi muttered to himself when they were out of earshot.

* * *

"Why did I let Lord Bowser talk me into this 'ambassador' nonsense?" huffed Kamek, the Magikoopa Guildmaster, as he turned his eyes above him and saw ten more flights of stairs between him and his destination. "I'm far too old for this. How did I wind up as the Koopa ambassador to everyone in the world? How did I find myself in this miserable backwater corner of creation? And how..." The aged wizard stopped climbing to catch his breath before shouting for all the world to hear, "How in the Abyss does Booster get around this tower with no elevator?"

After letting his complaint echo through the stairwells for a few seconds, Kamek continued his climb to the top of the tower where Booster, CEO of Boostercorp, waited for him. "Even a lift-block would be an improvement," he muttered, just to make sure he had the last word in his one-sided argument with the fates. "But that's okay," he added sarcastically, "nobody minds except Kamek, and who gives a hoot about Kamek anyway? Kamek's just a tired old relic from an earlier age. Why should it matter if he's running himself to death on Lord Bowser's business?"

_Lord Bowser's business_, Kamek thought_. Now _that's_ a laugh_. Everyone knew Bowser had very little "business" to do with Boostercorp. It was Baron Ludwig who dealt with them. Boostercorp was one of the leading manufacturers of Bullet Bills and Bill Blasters for Baron Von Koopa and his engineering corps, but Bowser rarely worried himself with such things. All he cared about was that the assembly lines of the Baron's engineers met their daily quota of tanks and fighter airships. It didn't matter where the parts came from or how the Baron got them.

At least, not until Baron Ludwig Von Koopa came under suspicion of treasonous acts of rebellion. Now, Kamek realized with distaste, all the Baron's associates, including Booster, were under close scrutiny by Bowser, which meant sending an "ambassador" to spy on Boostercorp from the inside. And somehow, the job had fallen to Kamek. Kamek had a great many things he could have said about this. He had a great many things he could have said about Baron Ludwig for his rebellious acts. He even had a great many things he could have said about Lord Bowser for sending him to this forsaken place. But Kamek said none of them. Instead, Kamek said the one thing that expressed his thoughts more profoundly than anything else.

"Nine more flights to go."

* * *

"Now this, Ensign," commented a Sarasi lieutenant commander as he and his young companion stepped into the Bandana Red, a crowded tavern in Seaside, "is what life in Her Highness's Navy is all about."

The commander and his companion walked to the nearest unoccupied table and sat down. "I don't know, sir," answered the ensign, surveying the rowdy crowd of Thalidian sailors who haunted the tavern, "this looks like a good place to get into a fight."

The commander grinned a rascal's grin. "That's half the beauty of it."

The ensign's response was cut short by a soft female voice asking "What'll it be for you fellows?"

The commander glanced up and saw a tall, blue-eyed Thalidian woman wearing a white spore-cap with pink specks standing next to the table. "I'll have a bottle of Nimbus ale," he said with the same up-to-no-good grin.

"Mm-hm," noted the tavern-maid, "Nimbus ale. Got it. And how 'bout you?"

The ensign looked around the room nervously. "Better make mine a Red Essence."

"Whoa," whistled the tavern maid, "Red Essence? You know what that'll do to you, don't you? Aside from that, it's a little on the expensive side."

"I know it dulls the senses," answered the ensign, "starting with perception of pain, and that's what I'm counting on. As for the expense," he indicated the rank on his collar, "I'm an officer. I can afford it."

The tavern maid shrugged. "It's your tab, not mine. Well, one Red Essence and a Nimbus ale, comin' right up."

The commander looked at his young companion in mock disappointment. "Red Essence? Tch tch," he said, shaking his head. "Afraid are we, Raz?"

"You know, Hinopio," the ensign replied, "I was born Thalidian. I grew up in Marrymore, not far from here, and I know crowds like this. They're rough in any situation, and most of them have had too much ale. Aside from that, Thalid-folk don't care much for Sarasis. Especially not when we're sitting in their tavern, drinking their ale, and in your case," he glanced after the tavern maid, "flirting with the women of their town."

Hinopio roared with laughter. "But of course, Raz. Of course it's a rough crowd. After all, they're sailors. But they're no match in a scrap for trained Sarasi soldiers. And as for their women," Hinopio took note of the volume of his voice and lowered it slightly. "As for that, that's the best part."

Raz was about to reply when the tavern maid returned carrying two empty shot glasses and two bottles. "Red Essence," she noted, placing one glass in front of Raz, followed by a bottle of a bubbling red liquid, "and Nimbus ale," as she placed the other glass and bottle in front of Hinopio. "Now if you two are still standing after you finish that, just call me." And with that she turned to a horde of other impatient customers.

"Oh, we will," Hinopio said knowingly. "We will." As the tavern-maid left the table, Hinopio reached out and dealt her hindquarters a healthy swat. She spun around to speak, but opted instead to simply walk back behind the bar and leave the two Sarasis to their own devices.

Raz, noting the tavern-maid's lack of reaction and realizing that it could only mean she was counting on the Thalid sailors to punish Hinopio for her, snorted in distaste as he poured himself a round from the red-filled bottle and almost immediately downed it. "Hinope, you need someone," he pointed out. "You really need someone."

"And you don't?"

"I have someone."

Hinopio lowered his second shot of Nimbus ale from his lips. "You do?"

"My wife, Raini," Raz answered, "is still in Officer School Back in Easton."

Hinopio downed his second, third, and fourth rounds of ale before continuing. "So tell me. How exactly did a Thalidian hotshot like you wind up married to an Air Force Cadet from Easton?"

"She's not from Easton," Raz corrected. "She's from Thalidia, like me." He took another shot of Red Essence before getting into what he knew would be a long, involved tale. "We got married about the same time that Thalidia was attacked by that Smithy creature. After a much-hastened return from our honeymoon, we decided that between Bowser, Smithy, the Cult of Belome, and all the other nutcases who had their eyes on Thalidia, the place just wasn't safe anymore, even with the Marios around. So, we packed up and left."

Raz paused to gulp down yet another round of Red Essence before telling the next part of his story. "We hopped from place to place for about two years, looking for some place where we could live in relative peace and raise a family. Finally, we wound up settling in Easton. Mind you, that was before Fortinbras started applying the draft to resident foreigners, so we were able to live the way we were used to, at least until the Resident Defender Act was passed. Left with a choice between the military or moving yet again, we opted for the military. So, we went through Basic, both went for a commission, and the rest is history."

By the time Raz finished his story the bottle in front of Hinopio was completely empty. "And just look at you now," he grinned as he said semi-coherently. "A maintenance officer on Archangel, the pride of the Red Angels."

A Thalidian sailor at the table behind Hinopio decided he had heard enough Sarasi small-talk by this point. "Well, what've we here?" he asked as if he had only just noticed Raz and Hinopio. "A pair of Sarasi..." his face contorted itself into a false smile before adding in a voice dripping with contempt, "gentlemen."

Hinopio turned around in his seat to face the sailor. "And what's it to you, fungus face?" he snapped.

"Hinope," Raz warned, "stay calm." But it was too late.

"Oh, I'm calm, Ensign," Hinopio replied as he polished off his bottle of Nimbus Ale in one mighty gulp. And he was. He kept his wits about him every step of the way as he calmly rose from his chair, calmly stepped toward the sailor when his back was turned, and calmly shattered the bottle upon the sailor's head.

The sailor fell unconscious to the floor, leaving Hinopio feeling quite pleased with himself, at least until his eyes rose from the knocked-out sailor to a crowd of his associates drawing knives from their belts and closing dangerously around Raz and Hinopio.

"Uh, Raz," Hinopio whispered nervously as his eyes darted around for a way out that wouldn't require going past an angry mob of Thalidian sailors, "I'm really beginning to wish you'd shared that bottle with me."

* * *

"Seven... six," Kamek panted as he climbed the last flight of steps in Booster's Tower. The door to the one hundredth-floor-hall was just a few steps away from him. "Five... four... three..."

Kamek was just about to count off two when the door swung open and three black-coated creatures burst out and practically leapt upon him.

"Mr. Kamek," squealed one of the creatures, "you made it!"

"We were starting to get worried," added another.

"Uh, yeah," the third creature added his intellect to the conversation. "It's like they said."

Kamek hadn't even quite comprehended the presence of the three things before they had finished their greeting, nearly knocking him down the stairs in the process. When he finally regained his balance and the blur that was the three creatures finally stopped moving long enough for Kamek to focus his eyes on them, he recognized them. "You must be the Snifits," Kamek surmised. "Snifit's 1, 2, and 3."

"That's us," replied one of the creatures, bouncing up and down in place. "I'm Snifit 1."

"And I'm Snifit 2," added another.

"And I-"

"I know," Kamek interrupted, "you're Snifit 3. That's what I said."

Kamek surveyed the blank expressions visible even through the masked faces of the three Snifits for a moment, and decided he had best take their brief conversation into his own hands. "Eh, where can I find Booster?"

"Mr. Booster?" Snifit 1 repeated for clarification.

"He's in his office," Snifit 2 answered Kamek's question.

"Yeah," Snifit 3 agreed.

When Kamek counted off a minute and a half of silence without the epiphany that they should escort him to this office striking any one of the trio, he decided to help them along again. "Well, where can I find this office?"

"Only in one place," Snifit 1 replied as sagely as he was wont to reply.

"It's down the hall through the secret entrance no one knows about," noted Snifit 2.

"Yeah," agreed Snifit 3. "The one that's hidden behind the bookcase with the globe on top, and that only opens when you turn the painting of Booster VII to face the wall."

"But we can't tell you how to find this secret entrance," Snifit 1 pointed out, "because it's a secret, so we can't tell you about it."

"So we'll take you there," offered Snifit 2.

"Yeah," nodded Snifit 3.

"Follow us, Mr. Kamek," the Snifits beckoned.

Kamek hesitated for a moment, not sure if he could stomach the thought of dealing with these three mental giants. However, in the end Kamek had little choice but to play along. This was Booster's Tower after all, not his, and the Snifits were Booster's aides. With an agonizing feeling that he had not seen the last of the Snifits' intellect, he accompanied them to Booster's secret office...

Once the Snifits remembered where it was.

* * *

"Lord Fortinbras," panted Martine as he sprinted up to the Prime Minister, interrupting his conversation with the First Officer of Archangel, "you'd better come quickly. There's a fight at the Bandana Red."

"The tavern?" Fortinbras asked. "What does that have to do with me?"

"There were Sarasi troops involved," Martine explained.

"What?!" exclaimed Fortinbras. "Sarasi soldiers? In a tavern brawl?"

"I'm afraid so."

"Lead on," Fortinbras replied. "Captain," he said as he turned to his first officer, "you stay here."

With that, Martine and Fortinbras bolted toward the Bandana Red to put a stop to the fighting.

"How did this happen?" Fortinbras demanded on the way.

"I don't know," replied Martine. "All I know is that a pair of Sarasi officers got into it with a mob of sailors from a Thalidian cargo ship."

"Most likely they were all as drunk as Rat Funks," Fortinbras growled.

"Yes," agreed Martine, "including the Sarasis."

"Inconceivable. Not Sarasi officers."

"The tavern maid who ran screaming out of the place to tell me what was going on said something about one of the Sarasis ordering a... eh, something potent. I forget the name. Red Essence, I think it was called."

Fortinbras slowed his running pace a bit. "Red Essence?" he blurted incredulously. "Do you mean to tell me that one of my officers-"

"Two of your officers, Prime Minister. See for yourself." Martine pointed to a long, one-story building in the shopping district of the town. "The door on the far left is the Bandana Red."

"Mayor Martine," came a frightened shout from just outside the building as a young Thalid woman ran up to meet Martine and Fortinbras. "Mayor Martine, thank Heaven you're here. They're still fighting in there, and I think it's getting worse." And it was true. From where they stood, Martine and Fortinbras could hear screams of rage and pain even over the noise of glass breaking and wooden chairs being shattered.

Martine placed a hand on the woman's shoulder to calm her. "Look, Ma'am, I need you to calm down. Now, can you tell me where the two men are who started this?"

At that moment there was an ear-shattering crash as a wooden table flew through the window of the tavern, showering the three bystanders with glass. With it tumbled two Sarasi officers and two Thalidian sailors.

"That's them," the tavern-maid noted almost off-handedly as she pointed at the two Sarasi officers.

Fortinbras lowered his head as a bull would before charging. "I'll handle this one, Mayor," he announced boldly as he stepped into the blur of fists and teeth and glass shards. He could barely tell which two were his officers through all the dust, but in the end he picked out a pair of uniformed soldiers wearing the ranks of ensign and lieutenant commander.

"Got you," Fortinbras snarled as he plunged his massive form into the fray and, grabbing the two officers by their collars, dragged them away from their Thalid opponents. "Both of you, stand down. That's an order!"

The officer wearing the rank of ensign took a brief look at Fortinbras and instantly stopped struggling as a look of horror and recognition spread over his face. The commander, however, was not so inclined to leave the fight until he had finished it. With a mighty lurch, he wrenched himself from Fortinbras' grip and threw himself back at one of the Thalidian sailors. He didn't get to continue his fight for long, though, because no sooner was he upon the sailor than he was on his back, reeling from a kick to his gut and an elbow to the bridge of his nose, and gasping to get back his wind. The sailors, looking on their downed opponent with relish, took the opportunity and leapt at him, biting and clawing. Their assault, however, was as short-lived as had been the commander's, and they soon found themselves being hoisted off their feet and launched through the air. The two Thalids crashed through one of the only unbroken windows of the Bandana Red, landing on the broken debris of a table, and rolling backward to land at the feet of a mob of sailors and soldiers, still engaged in their free-for-all. The fighters paused for only a moment at the interruption, but that moment was long enough for Fortinbras to make his presence known.

"The next man to move," Fortinbras thundered over the commotion, "answers to me." Once the room was completely silent and the last set of fists had been lowered, he stepped into the tavern. Fortinbras surveyed the Sarasi personnel in the tavern with disgust for a moment before a sickening realization came over him. "You're all from the crew of the _Archange_l, aren't you? Well,  
that's excellent," he raised his voice even higher to make sure his point was made, "because now you get to spend the next three days with me on training maneuvers while everyone else is enjoying their shore leave."

* * *

Luigi walked into his cabin on the secondary deck of the _Hero's Glory_, took off his uniform topcoat, and threw it carelessly on his bunk. "Three more days," he muttered to himself. "Three more days and the Chai Air Force will be here with my replacement and I'll be able to get rid of that blasted uniform." He took a very brief look out at the main deck through his cabin's only window before flinging himself down on the bunk. "This," he decided, "was all a mistake. I shouldn't be on this ship. I shouldn't be commanding this crew. I shouldn't even be wearing that uniform. 'Captain Mario' my mustache."

Luigi sat back up in his bunk. He still remembered clearly the conversation that he had had with Daisy.

"I have a war to fight, Daisy," he had told her. "I don't have time to be in the Navy."

"It's only temporary," Daisy had responded. "Just until we can find a permanent commander for the carrier fleet."

"But they have Fortinbras, and he's so much more experienced with organized military things like this. I'm not a soldier, Daisy. I do things my own way. I'm not the leader they need."

"They don't need a leader, Luigi. They need a hero, and you're it. Most of them are fresh out of training. The last time they saw combat was when they helplessly watched Tatanga take over their homelands. They're scared, Luigi, and the presence of one of the famous Mario Brothers would boost their spirits tremendously."

_Boost their spirits indeed_, Luigi thought to himself now as he sat in his bunk. The Sarasi pilots and crewmen all resented him. They thought he was naive, overconfident, and not at all fit for command. And on the last of those three complaints, Luigi knew they were right. He had no experience, no training, and in all honesty, no idea what he was doing. How did Daisy expect him to do this? Aside from all that, he was supposed to be in Thalidia right now. His brother and Princess Peach of Thalidia were going to be departing for Monstro City in less than a week, and Luigi was supposed to travel with them. "I really, really don't have time for this," he thought aloud again. "But I guess it's only for three days..."

And after all, what could go wrong in three days?

* * *

"Ambassador Kamek," a strangely tall Human woman greeted Kamek with a clearly-rehearsed speech, "We've been expecting you. Booster is waiting behind these doors for you. Follow me." The woman looked at the Snifits and gave a quick nod, and the three of them waddled through a smaller door to the left of the main entrance to take up their posts at Booster's side.

Kamek hesitated for a moment, eyeing this strange woman suspiciously. Lord Bowser had told Kamek about the Snifits, but other than that Kamek had expected to see no one but Booster. The tower's resident monsters usually kept out of sight, and the Spookum workers of Boostercorp were on the assembly lines, not in the offices. So who, Kamek wondered, was this? He surveyed the strange woman, trying to find something about her he would recognize. She was, Kamek observed again, very tall: almost freakishly so. She wore a simple white gown, and her green hair was styled in a way that Kamek felt certain could house a bird's nest.

Bird's nest! Hair! Of course! This had to be Valentina, Booster's wife and joint stockholder of Boostercorp.

"Ambassador," Valentina interrupted Kamek's thoughts impatiently, her rehearsed tone vanishing, "I said this way. Get in here or leave!"

Kamek clutched his wand aggressively, but thought better of it. He was here for a reason, and that reason didn't include killing anyone, at least not today. "Pardon me, madam," he said with as much congeniality as he could muster, "I was distracted."

Valentina let out a disinterested "Hmmph" before opening the double doors of Booster's office. Kamek followed her inside to find a huge, ornate room with portraits lining the walls. Kamek recognized the people in the portraits as the same as the portraits in the hall. At the center of the office stood a wooden desk so big it obscured the tiny man sitting half-asleep behind it with his feet propped up on the desktop.

_That must be Booster_, Kamek thought as he looked more closely at the man behind the desk. _Great Astral Forces, I didn't know he was that repulsive!_

Booster was incredibly small, especially when compared to Valentina, who stood right beside him. He wore a bright red and white suit that looked to Kamek like something that was thrown out by a circus, and his wild black beard had clearly not been trimmed for quite some time. Atop his head sat a fur-lined metal helmet with two horn-like projections on the sides. On his desk there was something moving.

Kamek strained his eyes to see the moving object on Booster's desk. It was black, and it seemed to be alive. _It's a rat_, Kamek observed. _No, not a rat. It's_... Kamek recoiled slightly, _a beetle. What in the world is that for?_

As Kamek watched the beetle attentively, Valentina bent toward Booster and whispered something in his ear. Whatever it was that she said, it was enough to get Booster's attention, for at that moment Booster's eyes opened with a start. He swung his feet off his desk and leaned forward in his chair. "Kamek, I suppose," he said in a gruff voice. "I've been expecting you."

"Indeed," Kamek nodded. "Mr. Booster, I..."

Booster held up a hand to silence Kamek. As Kamek pondered why, Booster reached across his desk, clenched the beetle in his fist and, as Kamek watched in revulsion, shoved the beetle into his mouth and began to crunch furiously.

"I'm sorry," Booster said between chews. "What were you saying?"

"Eh, actually," Kamek spoke slowly, still unnerved by Booster's eating habits, "Lord Bowser sent me here because you wanted to discuss some kind of quote-unquote business arrangement."

Booster looked confused. "Heh?"

Valentina bent toward Booster's ear once again and whispered.

"Oh, right. That," Booster nodded, clasping his hands in front of him. "I wonder, Kamek. Would your boss be interested in a more advanced Bullet Bill?"

_Finally_, Kamek thought, _the real reason I'm here_. "What kind of Bullet Bill and what kind of 'interest' are we talking about, Booster?"

"My company has developed a prototype Bill, based on a design used by Smithy. You might remember that when Smithy took over this continent, he replaced most of the Bill Blasters in Bowser's Keep with something similar, but different."

"I remember," Kamek agreed. "All the cannons fired what looked like Bullet Bills with gold casing instead of black. They were more powerful too. I think I heard some of Smithy's troops call them 'Magnums'."

"Yes," Booster nodded. "They hit their target with..." He held up his hands and seemed to be counting on his fingers for a few seconds. Finally, he held up three fingers. "They hit with twice the explosive yield."

Kamek slowly held up two fingers of his own. "Don't you mean, twice the explosive yield?" he corrected.

"Eh, whatever," Booster shrugged. "Anyway, we've figured out a way to mass-produce these 'Magnums', and we're willing to sell them to the Koopa Troop... if the price is right. Eh, read this." He held a packet of papers before him and snapped his fingers. In an instant one of the Snifits appeared at his side, took the packet, and handed it to Kamek.

Kamek read over the packet briefly and laughed. "Booster, Booster, Booster." He threw the papers down on Booster's desk. "This weapon of yours has twice the power of the one we're using now, right? Then what makes you think Lord Bowser is going to agree to pay nearly five times the cost per unit?"

There was no reply from Booster.

"... Booster?"

"... Huh?" Booster stared Blankly at Kamek.

Valentina rolled her eyes. "Booster, you bafoon," she snapped. "You couldn't a cup of water if I dropped you in Soda Lake! Let me handle this." She turned back toward Kamek and, forcing her best smile, replied with, "Ambassador, please be open-minded about this. Just imagine the possibilities if every doomship, every fighter-ship, and every tank could strike with twice the firepower they have now. Why, surely that kind of power would be priceless. When you consider it, I really don't think 500 per unit is that much to ask."

"My dear lady," Kamek contradicted, "the Koopa Troop doesn't have access to large amounts of Thalid currency. 115 per unit is steep enough. However," Kamek stepped away from Booster's desk and began to pace around the office, stroking his chin. _She seems to be open to negotiation. Perhaps I can use this to help alleviate another problem._ "The idea of a double-yield Bullet Bill is definitely noteworthy. But I can't just agree to your terms without first consulting Bowser. Also," he stopped pacing and looked directly at Booster and Valentina before continuing with a heavy edge, "I'll need a demonstration of the weapon first."

Valentina stepped toward Kamek slowly. "Just what kind of demonstration did you have in mind, ambassador?"

Kamek clasped his hands behind his back and began pacing again. "Lord Bowser's scout reports indicate that Sarasaland's Easton Air Force and its carrier task force are docked at Seaside right now. It seems the Sarasi troops are taking three days of shore leave, starting today. The carriers are running on shift-rotation skeleton crews, and the pilots are all off duty. It's the perfect time to attack and cripple or even destroy the Easton Air Force, but we'd have to strike quickly, stealthily, and ruthlessly. Now, what the Koopa Troop needs is a way to deliver a hard, fast blow to the Sarasis and crush them before they have time to counterattack. But with only one ship in the area, we'd need a much more powerful weapon than our standard Bill Blaster."

Valentina nodded slowly, beginning to understand what it was that Kamek wanted. "We can refit a small airship with the new cannons in a day if you'd like to sample the merchandise. But if it's a doomship..."

Kamek grinned wolfishly. "Walk out on your balcony, and look closely at the foot of Booster Hill."

Booster and Valentina both suspiciously rose and walked toward the door leading out to the balcony. With a quizzical look back at Kamek, Booster turned the knob and they both slowly stepped out onto the balcony, looking out at the foot of Booster Hill as Kamek had instructed and gasped.

"That's the _Archangel_!" Valentina choked out.

"Fortinbras' ship?" Booster shouted in disbelief. "It's an attack! Snifits, lock the-"

"Calm down, calm down," chuckled Kamek. "It's no attack."

Booster eyed Kamek with distrust. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, Booster," Kamek replied, "I'm sure. That's the ship that brought me here."

Booster's jaw fell to the floor in disbelief. "Sarasaland brought you?"

Kamek rolled his eyes. "No, Booster. That's a Koopa ship."

"You mean the Koopa's stole _Archangel_?"

Kamek clenched his hand around his wand, unsure how much more stupidity he could bear. "No, Booster," he said through gritted teeth. "Take a closer look at the ship and tell me if anything seems strange."

Booster did as he was told and examined the ship as closely as he could from his balcony, searching for anything out of the ordinary. Kamek had little doubt they could have stood there until the Star Road fell without Booster noticing had Valentina not noticed for him.

"The coloring's different," she noted. "_Archangel_'s hull is mostly painted white and streamlined in red. This ship's streamlines are purple."

Booster turned back toward Kamek with an approximation of understanding in his eyes. "Ah, I see. The Koopas stole the _Archange_l and repainted it so Sarasaland wouldn't recognize it," he mused. "Great idea."

"No, Booster," Kamek sighed before swelling his chest pridefully. "Mr. and Mrs. Booster, it is with great pride that I present the Imperial Koopa Air Cruiser _Fallen Angel_."

* * *

"How soon can your laborers get started?" Kamek inquired as he led Booster and Valentina out to the _Fallen Angel._

"As soon as they remove the original cannons from your ship," Booster answered.

"The cannons aren't there," Kamek corrected. "They were supposed to be installed when I got back to the Keep."

"Alright then," Booster agreed, "once I have a look at the weapon ports my Snifits will see to it."

Kamek stopped short. "Snifits?"

"I'll oversee it personally, ambassador," Valentina assured him. "Those Snifits couldn't find a cup of sand if they were turned loose in a desert."

Right," Kamek sighed as he resumed walking. "Thank you."

"I'm curious, ambassador, about one thing," Valentina remarked. "The _Archangel_ is outfitted with some rather unique weaponry. Aside from the cannons I think I remember hearing something about flame throwers and some kind of prototype main gun."

"That's correct," Kamek nodded.

"How have you managed to duplicate those?"

Kamek slowed his pace to explain. "Well, in point of fact we haven't. My spies managed to obtain the schematics of the ship itself, and that told us what the Sarasi weapons were, but how to build them remains a mystery. So we replaced them with some of the more proven weapons of the Koopas. In place of the flame throwers we installed breaker beams, and the main gun is-"

"Don't tell me," Valentina interrupted. "A plasma cannon?"

Kamek nodded. "What else, madam? And as for the broadsides, I intended to have Bill Blasters in the cannon ports, but I think your Magnum Cannons will round out the weapons compliment quite nicely."

"Yes, well, about that," Valentina changed the subject, "how many cannon ports are there on this ship?"

"Thirty-two," Kamek answered, "sixteen port and sixteen starboard. They're arranged on each side in two rows of eight."

"Thirty-two," Valentina said, relieved. "I suppose parting with thirty-two cannons free of charge isn't such a loss. I was afraid we were looking at a weapons array fashioned after a doomship."

Kamek laughed. "Oh no, madam. She's no doomship, not by any means. But all the same, I think she'll prove adequate for the task ahead. And speaking of tasks ahead," he slowed his pace again as they approached the ship, "how long will it take your workers to install the cannons once they're underway?"

"My Snifits can tackle a job like this in-" Booster started to boast, but was interrupted by Valentina.

"Booster, you clod! I thought I said I would oversee the work, not your Snifits." As Booster crossed his arms and skulked, Valentina turned back toward Kamek. "I'll have a workforce of Spookums working on it within the hour. It will be done by the end of the day."

Kamek looked at her with apprehension. "Are you sure?" he asked. Something about Valentina's boasting didn't seem quite right to the aged wizard.

"It's just a matter of placing the cannons in the ports and fastening them down," Valentina explained. "And I took the liberty of having fifty units of the new product ready-made for demonstrations. She turned toward her husband and directed her next comment at him. "I have everything under control. So, Booster, you can leave now."

"I can? Oh. Okay."

"Oh, by the way," Valentina added as an afterthought, "take those with you." She indicated the three Snifits, who had been following closely behind the trio the entire way with their blank expressions discernable even through their masks.

"Oh. Of course, dear," Booster agreed. "Alright, you lazy slobs, follow me!"

Once Booster returned to the tower, Valentina turned her attention back to Kamek and found him eyeing her more suspiciously than usual.

"So, madam," Kamek inquired, "you had fifty units prepared in advance? It sounds to me like you were expecting this."

"I was," Valentina muttered under her breath.

"And you have no qualms about giving away thirty-two cannons free of charge?" Kamek continued. "You never even gave it a second thought. Just what is it that prompts you to be so accommodating?"

Valentina looked away. "Just trying to make a sale," she said quickly. "Nothing more."

Kamek stepped toward her, placed his wand under her chin and turned her head toward him. "You will tell me the truth, madam," he said forcefully.

"I..."

"You will tell me the truth," Kamek repeated slowly.

"I will tell you the truth," Valentina echoed absent-mindedly, controlled by the enchantment Kamek had woven upon her.

Kamek removed his wand from her chin. "So tell me again, madam. What makes you so eager to please?"

"The truth is," Valentina began, "Boostercorp is in trouble: deep trouble. In fact, within six months the corporation will be bankrupt. Of course, Booster doesn't realize this, and neither do the Snifits, but I do."

"So you're on the verge of bankruptcy," Kamek mused. "How did the mighty Boostercorp come into such a desperate situation?"

"We're losing customers," Valentina answered. "In fact, the Koopa Empire is the only major buyer we have left. That's why we so badly need to persuade you to buy these new cannons. That's also why we were forced to charge so much per unit for them. Nearly all of our recent shipments to our customers have fallen prey to a group of pirates who prowl the shores of this side of the continent."

"Pirates?" Kamek's ears perked up. "What kind of pirates?"

"We don't know for sure," Valentina answered. "They leave no survivors, and they sink the ships when  
they're through. The few Spookum sailors who've managed to escape said the pirates claimed to be from some kind of cult."

That set off alarms in Kamek's mind. "A cult?" he gasped. "What kind of cult?"

"They were called the Cult of... the Below, or something."

Kamek was confused. "Cult of the Below?"

"No, no," Valentina shook her head. "That isn't right. I think it was more like... like..."

"Like?" Kamek urged his puppet on.

"I think the sailors called it the Cult of Belome."

Kamek disenchanted his mind charm and began to think. "The Cult of Belome," he poured over the news in his mind. "So they're still around. And they've been stealing weapons from Boostercorp's shipments no less. But why?"

"Ambassador," Valentina said to Kamek went on in this manner, "are you alright?"

Kamek spun around toward Valentina. "Nevermind," he waved her off as he quickly stalked toward the entry ramp of _Fallen Angel_. "Just get your workers started on those cannons."

* * *

The Koopa fighter-airship appeared behind _Archangel_ from out of nowhere. The crew of _Archangel_ scarcely had time to react to the enemy vessel's presence before it had assailed the Sarasi warship with a full volley of weapons. The ship's attack was of little avail, however, and it exploded in a brilliant fireball as Hinopio acquired a lock and finally connected with both flame throwers. "Direct hit," he reported. "Target down."

"New target," Fortinbras instructed. "Hostile approaching from zero-nine-zero: Evasive maneuvers, pattern Charlie Echo. Order escorts to assume flanking positions."

"Engaging evasive maneuvers," followed the helmsman. "Enemy evaded."

Hinopio instinctively saw his cue to act. "Targeting," he called out as he zeroed in on the Koopa fighter with both flame throwers and fired. "Target down."

"Incoming," warned the radar operator. "Enemies at ten, twelve, two, and six."

"Helmsman," Fortinbras commanded quickly, "full dorsal thrusters."

The helmsman instantly complied, and the weapons of the Koopa craft whizzed harmlessly through the space where _Archangel _had been only a moment before. Immediately, the rear flame throwers of _Archange_l opened fire without mercy upon their assailants, wiping out three of them within moments. All seemed to be going well, but the Sarasi crew had a new problem.

"Sir," called the alarmed radar operator, "the viewer!"

Fortinbras' eyes moved quickly to the colossal viewscreen at the front of the bridge. There, the radar display appeared and revealed the source of the radar operator's dismay: more than fifty Koopa fighters forming an ever-shrinking ring around _Archangel_. However, Fortinbras surmised there was an even more deadly plan afoot. "Radar," he ordered, "three dimensional sweep."

The radar operator did as he was ordered, and transmitted his findings to the main viewer. In seconds the screen had spilt into three separate displays showing for-aft, dorsal-ventral, and port-starboard radar sweeps. As Fortinbras had feared, the readings showed that the Koopa fighters had not truly formed a ring around _Archangel_ but a globe, and it was closing quickly.

"Gunner," Fortinbras shouted, but his command was unnecessary. Hinopio had already focussed the main gun and flame throwers on the nearest target in a desperate attempt to punch through the deadly enclosure.

"Target down," Hinopio reported, "but it's no good. They've closed around the opening."

"Fire again," Fortinbras insisted. "Wide volley. Helm, prepare for full forward thrusters."

Hinopio opened fire again with the full fury of the airship, but it was too late to see if their escape attempt was successful. No sooner had Hinopio let loose the _Archangel_'s fury than the Koopas had unleashed theirs.

"Loss of weapons control," informed the ship's status monitor apologetically. "Loss of engines. Loss of hull integrity."

"It's over," Fortinbras conceded, and he was right. The _Archangel _had been bested. The Prime Minister could only watch his status display helplessly as enemy weapons ripped his prized ship apart deck-by-deck. "Ensign," he sighed, "end simulation."

On command, Raz powered-down the combat simulation program he had been broadcasting to all decks of the _Archangel_. The bridge was silent, apparently anticipating the lecture to come.

"Total targets destroyed," Fortinbras read aloud off his status display, "seven. Targets damaged, two." His jaw jutted out as he glared in disgust around the bridge. "This is unacceptable. No, 'unacceptable' isn't the word. This is pathetic! Were this an actual dogfight, not only would we be dead, but we wouldn't have even taken enough of them with us for our deaths to mean anything. You all have one hour to review your failures. Then, we will repeat this exercise." His hand flew to the internal PA system. "Cannoneer decks, what happened? Did it occur to you to fire once in a while? The gunner up here on the bridge can't do everything himself, and a little extra heat on the enemies at our flanks would have been nice during that englobement."

"Um, sir," interrupted Raz apologetically, "the simulation program only transmits to display stations."

"Yes," Fortinbras nodded. "And?"

"Well sir," Raz reminded Fortinbras, "the cannoneers acquire their targets visually. They couldn't have known what was going on in the simulation, not to mention, sir, they can't simulate firing."

Fortinbras shook his head in mock sadness. "Your simulation program doesn't work? That's a shame, Ensign. That's a shame. I suppose that means we'll have to put these three days to some other use.

_Oops_, thought Raz. _I shouldn't have given him any ideas_.

"Helm," Fortinbras said in his robust voice, "set course back to Seaside. I suppose physical fitness training will have to suffice for the duration of our three day exercise."

Raz avoided the eyes of the bridge crew as he slinked back to his station.

* * *

"The Cult of Belome?" asked a chilling voice that seemed to come from all around Kamek's chamber aboard the _Fallen Angel_. "Are you sure of that?"

"That's what Valentina told me, Lord Bowser," Kamek replied. "I don't know whether she was right or not, but she couldn't intentionally deceive me after that truth charm I cast on her."

"If that's true," the voice said darkly, "then we may have a problem. The only possible reason that cult would want Booster's weapons would be if they're planning something, and I'm sure it has something to do with resurrecting the Devourer."

"What shall I do?" Kamek asked.

"Just continue your mission," the voice instructed Kamek. "And remember, I want to know if Boostercorp has any ties to the rebels in Monstro. If they do, then so does my son."

"Understood, Milord," replied Kamek respectfully.

"Oh, and one more thing, Kamek," added the voice.

"Yes, Milord?"

"As soon as you've finished cleaning up that mess you started in Sarasaland, I want a full review of that airborne monstrosity you took so much time building, centering on its effectiveness in combat." As the voice said this, it became faint and faded from Kamek's hearing.

"As you command, my king," Kamek agreed, though he knew his master could no longer hear him, "and mark my words, _Fallen Angel_ will be victorious... She has to be, for my sake." Kamek shuddered as he recalled what Lord Bowser's reaction had been when he returned from his last mission. Kamek had one chance to redeem himself, and that was to destroy the Sarasi forces at Seaside. If he failed... he didn't want to think about the consequences. _Fallen Angel_ was the guildmaster's last hope of regaining favor in the eyes of his king.

"Excuse me, Guildmaster," came a voice from the door of Kamek's chamber, interrupting his thoughts.

Kamek turned toward the door to find a tall, burly, stoic-faced Koopa standing at attention with a sledgehammer in his right hand. It was the Sledge Brother Captain of Kamek's guard. "What is it?" Kamek inquired of the soldier.

"Pardon the interruption, Guildmaster," the Sledge Brother replied with a bow, "but Lady Valentina sends word that the new weapons are in place."

"Excellent," Kamek commented. "And the ship?"

"All sections ready, Guildmaster."

Kamek clenched his hand around the wand in his hand with anticipation. "I want this ship airborne within the hour. We strike tonight at dusk."

"The ship is prepped for departure, Guildmaster," the Guard assured him. "We can initiate launch now if you so desire." The Sledge Brother looked around awkwardly. "It's simply that there's another problem."

"And what problem is that?"

"Reports indicate, Guildmaster," the Sledge Brother replied, "that the Easton Air Force is still docked at Seaside, as expected, but _Archangel_ isn't with them."

"What?"

"According to radar logs, the _Archangel_ and three escorts launched this morning at dawn. Destination, unknown. Also, another Sarasi fleet is en route to Seaside now."

Kamek repeated his previous question with more disgust. "What?"

"It appears to be the Chai Air Force, Guildmaster," the Sledge Brother reported almost apologetically. "I estimate they'll arrive at Seaside tomorrow at dusk."

"Well," Kamek muttered, "I'd so much rather wait until _Archangel_ can be destroyed with the rest, but I won't get another opportunity like this. Besides, maybe it's better to have the assurance that _Archangel_ can't interfere. Captain, have the Helmsman engage engines and set course for Seaside." He clenched his fist around his wand and growled, "We're not waiting for nightfall."

"Yes, Guildmaster," the Captain replied with a bow as he took his leave of Kamek. Within minutes Kamek felt the deck beneath his feet begin to rumble as propellers and turbines began to whine: quietly at first, but soon the noise became almost deafening. And to Kamek, there could be no more satisfying sound but one, and that was the sound with which Kamek would soon sooth his ears: the sound of Sarasi screams and exploding Sarasi warships.

* * *

At 2015, Seaside local time, the long-distance-radar operator of the _Hero's Glory_ sat back in his chair, quite bored. "How did I get stuck with this shift?" he wondered aloud. "Fortinbras announces three days shore leave for the entire wing, with only skeleton crews working shifts, and I get stuck on one of the skeleton crews. Instead of three days, I'm getting two."

"Radar," came a staticy voice from the intercom system, "this is the bridge. What's your report?"

"The same as it was last time you asked, bridge," answered the lazy chief petty officer. "And just like the time before that, and the time-"

"You could at least look at your screen to check, you bum," interrupted the bridge.

"Why?" insisted the radar chief. "We already know what I'm gonna see: nothing. There's not a Koopa around for miles. I mean, what would they be interested in here?"

"Just check, before I bring you up on vagrancy charges."

"Fine," whined the chief. "Fine, I'll check." He lazily leaned over toward his myriad of radar screens and briefly scanned over them with his eyes. There was nothing, just as he had... "Wait a minute. Bridge, you're right, we do have incoming."

"Identify," replied a suspicious bridge officer.

"Uh... one ship, en route from Booster Hill." The chief took a moment to more closely examine his screens before settling back into his chair with a half-relieved, half-disappointed sigh. "It's _Archangel_."

There was a moment of confused silence before the bridge replied with, "How's that possible? _Archangel_ left just this morning for Land's End."

"So Fortinbras took the scenic route coming back," barked the chief. "You can come down and see for yourself if you don't believe me."

"Watch your attitude, chief, or I'll have you busted back to Crewman Third Class before you can say 'court-martial.'"

The chief bit his tongue to keep from responding. "Transmitting data now... sir," he added deliberately.

There was a moment more silence before the officer on the bridge replied with, "Well, this reading doesn't make any sense."

* * *

"We're approaching Seaside, Guildmaster," reported the _Fallen Ange_l's helmsman eagerly.

"Incoming transmission," added the radio operator. "It's from the flagship. They're requesting we slow to docking speed."

"Docking speed," laughed Kamek. "Then they don't suspect us so far. Well, helmsman, slow to subsonic."

"Slowing to subsonic velocity," complied the helmsman. "Our speed is now at 300 kph."

"Gunner," ordered Kamek calmly, "extend the main gun. Begin charging breaker beams."

"Breakers charged," answered the Gunner.

Kamek watched his forward window closely, scarcely able to remain in his seat as the steam funnels of the Sarasi fleet became visible.

"Entering firing range now, Guildmaster," reported the gunner.

"Acquire all targets of opportunity," Kamek ordered. "Fire at will."

* * *

Luigi awoke to the sound of explosions all around him. "Mama mia," he shouted as he tumbled out of his bunk and onto the floor. As quickly as he could he grabbed his signature green workcap and stumbled across the shaking deck to his door, and up to the bridge. "What's going on here?" he shouted over all the noise. "Who's shooting at us?"

"You won't believe this, Captain," shouted the radar operator, "but it looks like _Archangel_!"

Luigi shook the sleep from his head as he absorbed what he had just heard before replying with a very groggy, "What?"

"We're being fired on by _Archangel_," reported the radar operator with a note of disbelief in his voice. "Orders, sir?"

"Open comm frequencies," Luigi ordered.

"Comm frequencies open," the radar operator called through the noise around him as the enemy ship sent another series of explosions rippling across the flight deck.

"_Archangel_, this is _Hero's Glory_. What d'you think you're doing exactly? Stand down. I say again, stand down from your attack."

The reply came in the form of another round of explosions from the flight deck.

"I think that's the universal signal for 'not no, but'..."

"Sir," interrupted the First Officer, "take a look at this."

"What is it?"

"Captain, those are Koopa weapons they're using."

"Say again, Commander?" questioned Luigi.

"Sir," reiterated the First Officer, "that's not _Archangel_. It's not even a Sarasi ship. I don't know how, but that's a Koopa Imperial vessel."

Luigi spun around toward the forward window in time to see the _Archangel_ look-alike ship sink the neighboring carrier vessel. "Comm," he commanded, "call our pilots back. Order all carriers to open fire, and deploy all aircraft."

* * *

"Lord Fortinbras," announced Hinopio as the Archangel came within a few miles of Seaside, "There's something going on down there."

"External camera," Fortinbras ordered, "maximum magnification. Show me what's happening." Instantly the viewing screen at the front of _Archangel_'s bridge displayed the battered carriers of the Easton Air Force and their assailant, a ship with the same configuration as _Archangel_. "What in the Heaven's name is that thing?" Fortinbras gawked as he slowly rose from his seat.

As a stunned silence fell over the bridge at the sight of the _Archangel_ doppleganger, it was Hinopio who turned to Lord Fortinbras with a suggestion. "Sir, I recommend we keep our distance. We can't save the fleet, and even though it looks like _Archangel_, that ship seems to have us outgunned, judging from the length of time it's taken to cripple the carriers. We should call for reinforcements from the Chai Air Force."

Fortinrbas took his eyes off the viewscreen to look in shock at Hinopio. "And what's the reason for this course of action, Commander?"

"Sir," Hinopio answered, "I lived inside Barrel Volcano for years, and you can't live long inside an active volcano without developing a sixth sense about no-win scenarios. I'm telling you, we should fall back."

"Negative," replied Fortinbras. "We're going in, and we're going in at full attack speed."

"Sir," insisted Hinopio, "without reinforcements we-"

"There won't be any reinforcements, Commander!" Barked Fortinbras. "By the time they get here, this will be over. Increase speed and attack!"

Hinopio swallowed hard to keep from questioning the order. He knew arguing with Fortinbras was pointless. "Increasing speed, sir," he announced grudgingly.

* * *

"Guildmaster," called the Sledge Brother at _Fallen Angel'_s radar station, "_Archangel_ is approaching."

"Is she now?" Kamek gloated. "Well, well, what an unexpected pleasure. Plot an attack course."

"Course laid in, Guildmaster."

"Breaker beams," Kamek shook with glee as he spoke, "target her bridge. It's time to take out Fortinbras once and for all. Order gunner decks to maintain fire on what's left of the carrier fleet." Kamek paused to savor his impending victory. "Today I, Kamek, will go down in history as the greatest Koopa hero since Warlord Monstro."

* * *

"Captain," declared a joyous radar operator on the _Hero's Glory_, "another ship just entered Seaside airspace. It's the _Archangel_: the real one!"

"Fortinbras," Luigi muttered, "I never thought I'd be glad to see you. Flight Control, have the pilots on leave returned yet?"

"Yes sir, they have," reported the Flight Control chief, "but most of their Sky Pop Fighters have been destroyed."

Luigi slammed his fist down on a nearby control panel. "What's the status of the carrier fleet?"

"One hundred twenty carriers have been sunk, sir," answered the First Officer, "and three more are going down. Sadly, sir, we're in the best shape of anything in the harbor."

"How many fighters are still flight capable?" Luigi demanded.

"Difficult to say, sir, but I'd guess not more than twenty."

"Twenty," Luigi spat, "out of the entire fleet." He glanced out the forward window at the enemy vessel, now locked in combat with _Archangel_ and her three escorts. Suddenly, a thought struck him. "Wait a minute," he whispered to himself, "you're one of the Mario Brothers. You've brought down Imperial Doomships with nothing but a Fire Flower." That was that then, he decided. He knew what he had to do. "Commander," he said sternly, "you have the bridge."

"Sir?!"

"I'm leaving," Luigi replied, "and the bridge is yours." And with that he turned to leave for the flight deck.

"But sir, where are you going?"

Luigi looked over his shoulder to answer, "I'm going to that ship." The First Officer didn't get to ask any further questions, because by this time Luigi was outside the bridge.

* * *

"Helm," said Fortinbras through gritted teeth as the enemy mockery of his command vessel swung around for another attack run, "Evasive maneuvers."

"I'm trying, sir," answered Raz from the helm, "but the hostile's not breaking away. She's got her sights set hard on us, Milord."

"Well," Fortinbras muttered, "we can't outrun her, we can't outmaneuver her, and we surely can't outgun her, so we'll have to outsmart her captain. Helm, point our bough toward that thing. All ahead full!"

"Yes sir," replied Hinopio worriedly as he laid in the collision course."

"All decks, brace for impact: forward," Fortinbras announced over the intercom.

The bridge crew clenched their fists tightly around whatever they could find to cling to as the two ships flew closer to each other. "She's not breaking away, sir," Hinopio noted.

"I can see that," Fortinbras replied. "Maintain course."

No one on the bridge dared to ask what Fortinbras was planning. In truth, he didn't know, but his desperate act proved effective, because at the moment when impact seemed unavoidable, the enemy ship turned its nose hard to port and flew past the _Archangel. _

"Starboard cannon decks," Fortinbras shouted, "open fire!"

Moments later, _Archangel_'s nemesis was assailed with hundreds of shots from the vessel's P.O.P. cannons.

"Yes!" Fortinbras leapt from his chair as he watched the enemy vessel rock from the beating it had taken. "Aft flame throwers, target her propellers. Comm, open a channel to that thing." Fortinbras straightened his uniform as he smugly finished, "I want to discuss terms of her surrender."

"Surrender?" came a chilling, all-too-familiar voice from the air all around the bridge. "Fortinbras, m'boy, I think not."

Fortinbras clenched his fists until they bled as he recognized the voice. "Kamek," he snarled, "you're on that monstrosity."

"You don't miss a thing, do you?" came the sarcastic reply. "Ooooooh, Fortinbras, I do wish this didn't have to blow you out of the sky so quickly; I'm rather enjoying this. But all good things must come to an end."

"Sir," reported Raz, "she's coming around again," his eyes widened in horror as he checked his readings again, "and she's charging a plasma cannon."

"And now," Kamek taunted, "witness the downfall of the mighty _Archangel_ at the hands of my prize, the _Fallen Angel_."

Before Fortinbras could give the order for evasive action, a white-hot bolt of magic-enhanced plasma ripped through the ship from bough to stern. Fortinbras shouted every curse he could think of in every language he knew as he gave a stomach-turning order. "All hands, abandon ship."

* * *

"Alright," Luigi muttered as climbed into the cockpit of one of the Sky Pop Class fighters carried by _Hero's Glory_, "Mario flew one of these, so I guess I can too." With a quick glance over his shoulder to ensure that _Fallen Angel_ would allow him a safe takeoff, Luigi closed the cockpit, flipped the ignition switches, pointed the fighter's nose toward the end of the deck...

... and randomly reached for the first button he could find that looked promising. "This may not be as easy as I thought," he muttered as the craft's propellers began to snarl to life and the fighter began to move.  
Nervously, Luigi pulled back the throttle and the craft began to ascend. "I hope I'm doing this right," he said worriedly as he neared the end of the Flight Deck, "because if I'm not, there's nothing in front of me but a whole lot of water and wrecked ships." Finally, Luigi was rewarded with the sound of silence from the fighter's wheels as they left the deck and receded into the craft's underbelly.

Luigi breathed a sigh of relief as the view of the carrier fleet faded beneath him. "Now," he snarled as he turned toward the last place he had seen _Fallen Angel_, "to remind this Koopa scum why they haven't won the war yet."

* * *

"All hands are away," reported _Archangel_'s First Officer to Fortinbras. "We're the last two."

"Good," said Fortinbras in resigned defiance. "Take your parachute and get off this thing."

The first officer looked at Fortinbras in shock. "What about you, sir?"

"I'm not leaving," Fortinbras answered as he took his usual seat at the command station.

"What do you mean, sir? You can't stay here."

"Yes I can, Commander," Fortinbras sighed as he looked out the window at the apparent conqueror, _Fallen Angel_. "There's an old saying that the Captain goes down with the ship, and my ship is going down."

"But sir, that's ridiculous. What good will it do, anyway? Sarasaland needs you."

Fotinbras chuckled at the irony of the statement. He chuckled because it was what he had once believed. "No," he muttered as he thought of his arch-rival, Luigi. "Sarasaland has the hero it needs already."

"I'll remember you said that, Fortinbras," came Luigi's voice over the air-to-air radio, "when we BOTH get out of this."

Fortinbras leapt from his seat to the communications post in a single bound. "Luigi," he gasped, "what are you doing in the air?"

"Taking down that contraption," Luigi replied, "or my last name isn't Mario. But I can't do it from the outside, and I could use a little help getting onboard."

Fortinbras glanced over his shoulder at the weapons station to find his grinning first officer there. "Main weapons ready," the first officer reported.

"Well then," Fortinbras snarled savagely, "It's time to bring an Archangel's Judgment down on the Koopas."

* * *

"What's the status of the _Archangel_?" Kamek inquired with deranged zest.

"Her crew is bailing," reported the Captain of Kamek's Guard. "Shall we target the crew, Guildmaster?"

"No," Kamek answered ruefully, "no. Continue bombardment of the _Archangel_. I want those soldiers to go back to Sarasaland scared out of their wits with first-hand accounts of _Archangel_'s destruction. We've taken the air, and now we will take their spirits."

"Aye, sir,"

"Guildmaster," commented the radar operator, "Archangel is making a direct run at us. In fact…" The Sledge Brother looked up from his instrument panel, wide-eyed. "Brace for Collision!" Before Kamek could react he was thrown to the deck amid the sound of screaming metal as the _Archangel'_s nose barreled into the underbelly of the Fallen Angel.

"Fortinbras, you son-of-a-Goomba," Kamek grimaced. "You couldn't outgun me, so now you try to ram me?"

"Guildmaster," screamed the terrified radar operator, "we're losing altitude. _Archangel'_s attached to us."

"_Archangel_ is.. well remove it!," Kamek hissed. "All lift engines, full power. Get clear of that ship!"

The Helmsman obeyed, and the _Fallen Angel_'s metal hull screamed hellishly as she pulled herself away from the _Archangel_, metal from both ships twisting in the wake as it climbed. When the helmsman was satisfied that he was far enough away from _Archangel_ to move uninhibited, he turned toward Kamek. "Orders, Guildmaster?"

Kamek glowered behind his hooded robe. "It's time to draw this sorry little episode to a close."

* * *

"_Fallen Angel_'s pulled away, Luigi," Fortinbras called over the radio. "But not without substantial damage to the underside. You have your opening."

"I'm not sure I'll survive jumping into all that," Luigi retorted. "My flight path would be right through their cannons' lines of sight."

"Well, we can try one more..." Fortinbras was cut off by an explosion from the floor beneath his feet. Looking back, he saw his First Officer scrambling back to his post to check the stability readings of the warship. "Sir," he informed Fortinbras, "the engines are running too hot, and the hull was compromised too much by the collision. If we don't land this ship soon, we'll blow ourselves up. We won't need Kamek's help!"

"Luigi," Fortinbras relayed this information to his hated champion, "you're about to be on your own."

"I heard," Luigi replied. "Get out of here, Fort. Save yourself and your ship, and leave Kamek to me."

Fortinbras didn't reply. Somehow, He still couldn't force himself to wish Luigi well. So, he gave his last, grave report before setting the ship down on the first open beach he could find. "_Archangel,_ disengaging."

* * *

"The _Archangel_'s pulling away fast, Guildmaster," the words came from the radar operator of _Fallen Angel_. "The wings were both badly damaged in that collision. We can't match her speed anymore."

"The _Archangel_'s immaterial," Kamek snarled. "Prepare to-"

"Guildmaster," the radar operator cautioned. "There's a fighter plane coming at us, on a collision course as well."

"Brace for impact." Kamek sounded more annoyed than worried. As soon as the order left his mouth there was a deafening roar as the starboard cannon array exploded, taking all their ammunition with them, as well as the starboard wing. "So much for using Booster's marvelous new weapons," Kamek growled. "Status of the _Archangel_?"

"She's out of range, Guildmaster."

"And the carrier fleet?"

"Crippled. We've accomplished our task, Guildmaster. We should leave."

Kamek chewed on his lip as he considered this. "Yes, they'll call for reinforcements. Set course for Booster Hill, mach 5."

"Aye sir," answered the helmsman, overjoyed to be leaving in one piece, such as that piece was.

"Guildmaster," reported the internal security officer this time, "you won't believe this, but we have an intruder in the starboard weapons bay."

Kamek slowly rose. "What?"

"It seems the smaller craft's pilot landed on-board when he ejected, Guildmaster, and he landed inside the Starboard elevation pod."

"Activate the Firebars, quickly," Kamek gasped as he stepped toward the internal security station cautiously. "How the Devil could anyone be that stupid?"

* * *

"Hey hammerhead!" Luigi's shout got the attention of the Sledge-Brother-on-duty just in time for him to know what hit him as Luigi's feet connected with the Koopa's face. Reeling from the impact, the Sledge Brother dropped his hammer, his only weapon. "Oooh, man," Luigi mocked his foe, "that can't be good." The latter was proven true as Luigi vaulted into the air and came down squarely on the Koopa's shoulders, knocking him off balance enough that he staggered forward and fell through the now-gaping hole where the ship's starboard wing had been. "There," Luigi congratulated himself as he watched his enemy fall into the vast air below the airship. "That's how a Mario Brother does things."

Luigi's celebration proved short-lived, however, as alarms sounded all over the ship. "Uh oh," he thought. "They know I'm here." A crackling sound behind Luigi told him to duck, and he did just in time to see a string of flaming orbs, held together by magic, swing across where his head had been a moment before. "That was close," he whispered as he looked around to make sure no other surprises awaited him.

Slowly and cautiously Luigi rose. With a final look over his shoulder to ensure that the Sledge Brother wasn't somehow climbing back aboard the ship, he sneaked out the door and into the starboard access hall. "Wait," he thought as he reached the door and looked back at the hammer dropped by the Sledge Brother. "That might be useful." Without another moment's hesitation, Luigi picked up the hammer and took to the halls on his way to the bridge, dodging Firebars as he went.

* * *

"Report, Kamek," Bowser's bloodcurdling voice reverberated off of the bridge walls as he called to Kamek across the vast distance between them.

"The mission was primarily a success, Sovereign," Kamek informed him. "The Easton Wing was completely annihilated. _Archangel_ wasn't destroyed, but she was crippled. It would seem Booster's new weapons are every bit as powerful as he boasts them to be."

"And as to Booster's connections with Ludwig?"

"As far as I can tell, sire, Boostercorp has no connections to Baron Von Koopa except their business dealings."

"Excellent," Bowser gloated. "When you next see Booster, inform him that his business with the Koopa Empire will be with me from now on."

"As you wish, sire," Kamek agreed. "And, Milord, what of _Fallen Angel_?"

"She's yours," Bowser waved the issue off. "She's a tough ship for her size, but she's no Doomship. I'm giving her to you and the Magikoopa's guild."

"Thank you, Lord Bowser," Kamek said with a slight bow of his head.

"Well, if there's nothing else, I'll see you when you return to the Keep. Bowser out."

When Bowser's voice faded completely, the Captain of Kamek's guard stepped up beside the Guildmaster and whispered, "You didn't report the intruder, Guildmaster."

"Indeed," Kamek agreed. "There's no need to trouble Lord Bowser with that until we have something _in_ the report."

"Understood, Guildmaster."

* * *

"Whoa! Low doorway," Luigi exclaimed as he ducked underneath a Firebar just in time to keep it from catching him dead in the face. "Didn't see that one. I'd almost think Kamek doesn't want me here." With that statement, he continued his mad dash toward the bridge door, now less than forty feet away. "Let's see," he mumbled, "I don't see any Firebars except the ones on the walls, and timing them shouldn't be tough. The question," he thought aloud as he jumped over a Firebar swinging clockwise from his left and ducked under an opposite bar just beyond it, "is how to get through that door once I get there."

Just as Luigi reached the door, the answer presented itself in the form of a detail of three Sledge Brothers scrambling out the door in search of the intruder.

"Hiya, boys!" Luigi's shout, as well as his presence in the hall in the first place, disoriented the Sledge Brothers enough for him to bound over the head of the first one in line, landing on the head of the second and knocking him out cold. As the remaining two both swung their sledgehammers at Luigi, he calmly ducked, and each guard's weapon connected with the other's face.

"What in the name of..." Luigi heard Kamek's croaking old voice as he stood up and dashed onto the bridge, sledgehammer in-hand. Luigi smirked in anticipation of the expected screaming and swearing and shouts of 'You! You're the intruder? How did you get here?' Instead, Luigi was greeted by a moment of stunned silence, followed by a chorus of laughter. "Luigi?!" panted a doubled-over Kamek, "Sarasaland let _you _in their military? Just when I thought they couldn't get any more foolishly desperate." With a quick look at Luigi's uncharacteristic gray uniform he added, "and do you have any idea how ridiculous you look? I mean, the sledgehammer is ludicrous enough, but those epaulettes..."

While Kamek continued his taunts, Luigi lunged at him and connected the sledgehammer with the side of the Guildmaster's head, knocking him face-down on the floor in a daze. Luigi spun quickly after hitting Kamek, preparing for the inevitable salvo of blows from the Guildmaster's Sledge Brother guards.

"I should've seen that coming," Kamek said matter-of-factly as he pulled himself up from the floor. "And you, Luigi, should've seen this!" Kamek rolled over onto his back and thrust his wand in Luigi's direction, sending sizzling bolts of electricity through his body and causing him to drop the hammer. The bridge crew, on the other hand, were still in possession of their own hammers, and Luigi was soon paid in kind for the cruel blows he dealt to their brethren. "Leave him!" Kamek commanded after allowing the crew their barbarous revenge for a moment, and the Sledge Brothers backed away from Luigi as he lay, barely conscious on the floor. "I've been waiting for this for some time, Luigi," he crowed as he ominously moved toward his fallen foe. "And now you, just like all others who dare oppose the might of Lord Bowser, will die."

As Luigi turned his glazed-over eyes toward Kamek, the vindictive Magikoopa raised his wand above his head and began to laugh: only a smirk at first, but soon he began to cackle maniacally. As he laughed, the ball on the tip of his wand began to glow. _This is it_, thought Luigi_. This is how it ends. In a moment he'll unleash some spell on me._ "Daisy," he closed his eyes and whispered, "I love you. I'm sorry I can't come back to you, but I love you. You gave me a reason to fight, and a reason to live. You meant everything to me. I wish I had one more chance to tell you that."

_**You'll get that chance, Luigi.**_ No words were spoken, no sound was heard, but the words were there, unmistakably present. They were there just as clearly as if they had been written on the very minds of everyone on the bridge.

"Who's there?" Kamek demanded of thin air as he diverted his attention away from Luigi. "Who are you? I command you, show yourself!"

_**If you insist, Kamek**_, came the reply, just as unspoken, and just as clear as the earlier interruption. Instantly, the bridge was bathed in blinding light. As the crew shielded their eyes from the light, it faded. When everyone's eyes readjusted, only a tiny, shimmering speck remained hovering where Luigi had been a moment before, but Luigi himself was nowhere to be found. _**I warned you to leave him be, Kamek. You wouldn't heed me, so now you will pay the price.**_

Before Kamek could question this he heard screams from his guards as the same blinding light that had engulfed the bridge began to radiate from them. Within moments, the light faded, as did their screams, and they were gone, save for the Captain of the Guards, who stood beside Kamek. "Wha... what?" Kamek stammered. "Where are they? What have you done to my guards?"

The light gave no reply. _**I'll be watching, Kamek,**_ it non-spoke and disappeared.

"Guildmaster," whispered the terrified Sledge Brother beside Kamek, "what was that?"

Kamek crossed his arms and looked suspiciously around the room before responding. "It was nothing, Captain. Do you understand me? It was nothing. Leave it to me." Before the Captain could reply, Kamek stalked off the bridge and down the hall to his cabin.

* * *

Luigi awoke hours later to find himself lying in the sand of a beach, staring up at the same brilliant speck of light he had seen before on Fallen Angel. "Wha... where?" he sputtered as his last memories came back to him. "How did I... I mean..."

_**Ah, you're finally awake,**_ Luigi perceived the unspoken greeting. _It's about time._

"That light," Luigi murmured, "that voice... on the ship..." Finally, he sat upright and asked clearly, "Who are you?"

_**My name is unimportant,**_ was the response. _**Besides, you don't know me. Only know this: I'm never your enemy, and at present, your friend. So long as you continue to resist Bowser and Kamek, this will remain. Remember that, You-Who-Travel-the-Star-Road.**_

"Star Road," Luigi whispered in awe, "then you're a star spirit?"

_**Something like that, yes. But what I am isn't important either. There is a popular saying in Sarasaland: 'Angels and Archangels watch over the Four Princedoms,' and that saying isn't just talking about Archangel and the Red Angels. I don't claim to be an angel, nor do any of my kind, but always remember that Sarasaland, and all who resist the enemies of peace, are being watched from above. Farewell, hero of Sarasaland.**_

As the light faded from view, Luigi began to drift in and out of consciousness. When he finally came to his full senses, he found Fortinbras looking down at him, calling his name.

"Luigi? Luigi, do you hear me?"

"Fortinbras?" Luigi groaned as he tried to sit back up.

"Whoa, whoa," Fortinbras said firmly. "Easy there, you've had quite an ordeal from the look of things. What exactly happened to you?"

Luigi paused, attempting to remember the answer to that. "Well, I don't know. I was on the Bridge of _Fallen Angel_, having the crud beaten out of me by Sledge Brothers, then there was this weird light, and that's the last thing I remember."

"Well, whatever you did on _Fallen Angel_, it worked. She's crashed into Booster Pass, and even Koopa Engineer battalions will have a hard time patching her up. My question is how exactly did you get here, anyway? _Fallen Angel_ was flying as hard as she could on one wing in the opposite direction."

"I'm not really sure," Luigi replied honestly. "Come to think of it, I'm not even sure where 'here' is."

"You're on the beach of Seaside," Fortinbras explained, pointing his hand out over the sea "just outside the port. See, you can see the Chai Wing arriving right now."

Luigi looked in the direction Fortinbras pointed and saw the steam funnels of the Chai Air Force's carrier fleet sailing into Seaside Harbor, docking right alongside the wrecks of the Easton Wing. "They're a little late," Luigi chuckled darkly. Suddenly, a new worry struck him. "What about _Archangel_?"

"She took a beating," Fortinbras admitted, pointing toward a now frozen hill roughly a half-mile inland from where he and Luigi sat, "but she's salvageable. And," he added, as if forcing himself to find something positive about the situation, "from the state of the hill, we know that the liquid nitrogen in the cannon works."

"Yeah," Luigi agreed, "I guess we do."

The two men sat in awkward silence for a moment before Fortinbras looked toward Luigi. "Listen, Luigi," he said in his all-business voice, "I know you didn't expect to hear this from me. Frankly, it's hard for me to believe I'm saying it, but thank you. If it weren't for you, the day would probably have turned out a lot worse."

Luigi stared at Fortinbras, scarcely able to believe what he had just heard. Apparently, Fortinbras noticed, because his expression hardened again. "It doesn't mean my opinion of you has risen one bit. Now see if you can stand up so I can get you to the infirmary to be patched up."

"Before that," Luigi interrupted, "there's one thing I want to take care of."

"Oh?"

"I volunteered for a temporary commission in this navy, key word 'temporary,' only to command this fleet until they got to Seaside."

Fortinbras nodded.

"Well, that mission is over, and I need to get to Toad Town to go with Peach and Mario to Monstro City. With your permission, I'd just love to be relieved of commission and discharged."

"Gladly," Fortinbras said, as relieved as Luigi. "The sooner I can be rid of you, the better. Captain," he extended his arm in a halfhearted Sarasi salute, "you're hereby relieved of commission and discharged from the Sarasi Navy."

"I stand relieved to be relieved," Luigi sighed and returned the salute. "So now," he said as he slowly rose to his feet, "I guess I can get rid of this uniform." He looked with distaste at the shoulder epaulettes and snarled, "starting with these blasted things!" With that, he ripped them from his shoulderboards and followed Fortinbras to the town, dreaming with each step of being able to throw off the uncomfortable uniform and replace it with his familiar blue shirt and green overalls.

* * *

Kamek was furious. Victory over one of the Mario Brothers had been within his grasp, and he'd lost him. He lost him, all because of an unwelcome interference by an old acquaintance. _Well,_ he thought grimly as he stormed into his deserted cabin and sealed the door behind him, _now is the time to set things straight with the same acquaintance_.

"I THOUGHT WE HAD A DEAL, GUARDIAN!" he roared at the thin air around  
him.

_**If blackmailing me is what you call a deal, yes. I agreed not to interfere in your affairs. I haven't broken that deal. In fact, you should thank me. I stopped someone else from interfering with them. **_At this reply, the all-to-familiar speck of light appeared in front of Kamek.

"What's the matter, Guardian?" Kamek gibed. "Are you so afraid of a mortal wizard that you won't even take on corporeal form?"

_**Very well, very well. Just to shut you up .**_As Kamek perceived this response the light began to flicker until it was a blazing strobe, forcing Kamek to shield his eyes yet again. When the light faded, a figure with a body that seemed to Kamek to be made of wood and clad in a tattered blue cape and matching pointed hat stood in front of him.

"A wooden doll?" Kamek sneered. "Is that the best you can do?"

"It's something I once indwelt," replied the Guardian, finally in an audible voice. "Ask Bowser or Mario. They'll remember fighting alongside me against Smithy. Besides, I rather like this form." He stepped toward Kamek until he was inches from his face and looked straight down at him before sarcastically explaining, "It's taller than you."

"I'm quaking with fear, as you can see," Kamek quipped. "You're playing a dangerous game, Guardian, meddling in things that don't concern you."

"All things concern me, mortal fool," the Guardian replied, rolling his eyes disdainfully.

"Temper, temper, Guardian," Kamek prodded, waving his wand dangerously in front of him.

"Am I supposed to be afraid of that?" the Guardian replied with arms crossed.

"You should be," Kamek answered. "Not because of what I can do with it, mind you, but because of what your superiors would do to you if they found out where it came from. Or have you forgotten our conversation when last we met?"

"Don't try to threaten me, Kamek."

"Oh, why not?" Kamek taunted. "I could ruin you any time I wanted. Just imagine your disgrace when the Seven find out that the 'Evil Magikoopa Guildmaster's' gift of divination comes from a chip broken from the Star Road, clumsily misplaced by the Guardian forty-five years ago. So much for your careful policy of noninterference in mortals' activities."

"You're right," the Guardian shot back. "They'd be so enraged that the only way for me to redeem myself would be to kill the one who has been misusing that ill-gotten gift for so long."

"Oh, I doubt you'd have that chance to redeem yourself."

The Guardian turned his back to Kamek and walked to the other side of the room. "Either way, it doesn't matter, because all I've done is stopped you from killing the only one who will be able to save you if the Cult of Belome has their way."

"The Cult of Belome," Kamek laughed. "They're no threat. Do you honestly think they'll ever revive that beast?"

"They're closer than you can imagine, Kamek. Why do you think they've been raiding Booster's ships?"

Kamek looked at the Guardian in confusion. "What do weapons shipments have to do with reviving Belome?"

"Nothing. They're not after the weapons, you idiot. They're after the sailors. They need Human sacrifices to fulfill the Old Prophecy and bring him back," the Guardian spun around to face Kamek, "and they've almost fulfilled their number."

"You're just trying to scare me," Kamek chided.

"Believe that if you want, Kamek. Or don't. It makes no difference to me. All I can tell you is to tread lightly. I'm not the one playing a dangerous game. And don't think I show your empire any favoritism by delivering this message. I'm telling you because the Koopas have the best chance of stopping the Cult before they succeed." The Guardian's wooden body began to glow until it disappeared in a flash of light, leaving only the speck once again. _**I'll be watching, Kamek. But the next time you do something suicidal, I might not be there to stop you.**_ With that warning, the light vanished, leaving Kamek alone in his cabin with much to think about.

* * *

"Well, Mayor Martine," Fortinbras sighed as he stood in the Mayor's doorway giving his grim report, "I feel I have to apologize for the damage to your town. I know it wouldn't have been attacked if my troops hadn't been here."

"It's fine, Milord," Martine replied with a smile. "None of the townspeople were hurt, and buildings can be repaired. I just hope your own losses weren't too great."

"Well, our casualties were mercifully light," Fortinbras nodded, "but the fleet itself was crushed. This was a dark day indeed for Sarasaland." Fortinbras wiped the sweat from his face as he continued, "Those new weapons worry me."

Martine's ears perked up. "New weapons, Milord?"

"Oh, indeed," Fortinbras explained. "We found one of their projectiles undetonated. It looks like some kind of high-yield Bullet Bill."

"My goodness," Martine gasped.

"Well, we'll be ready for them next time," Fortinbras stated defiantly. "Make no mistake of that."

"No doubt, Milord," Martine agreed.

"But in any case," Fortinbras sighed, "we've inconvenienced you long enough. As soon as we see what we can salvage from the wrecked ships we'll be out of your harbor. On behalf of the Four Princedoms of Sarasaland, as well as Her Imperial Highness's Soldiers, please accept my sincerest thanks for your hospitality. Farewell."

"Oh, the pleasure is ours, Milord," Martine insisted as Fortinbras walked away. As soon as Fortinbras was out of sight, however, the Mayor's smile faded, and his expression turned dark. "I have to tell the Brotherhood about this," he murmured. Quickly, he closed the door and strode up the stairs to his room, where he removed a specific courier pigeon from its cage. Martine quickly scribbled a note, placed it in the tube tied to the bird's leg, and released the bird through the open window. Unknown to anyone but the readers, that note would soon send repercussions throughout the world.

_To the Priests of Belome in Moleville:_

_Booster's new weapons are now in Koopa hands. I've seen them in action, and they are most effective. Continue current operations, but proceed with caution. We cannot allow Bowser to interfere when we are so close to our glorious goal._

_-Long Live the Devourer,  
High Priest Martine_


End file.
